Malumtale: The Timeline of Doom
by Seventh Narrator
Summary: In a timeline where the monsters have banished the humans underground, a child has climbed to the surface above. The child awakens to find a world that they may never want to leave, and is thrown into the midst of an unfinished story of sacrifice, loss, and determination. I don't own Undertale or Deltarune, all credit for them and their original elements go to Toby Fox.
1. The Ruins- Entrance

_A blinding light... the feeling of a cold, stone floor... a cold breeze flowing through the air..._

These were the first things the human noticed upon waking up. Legends had always said that one with enough determination could cross the barrier, but the child had never believed it for themselves.

The human stood up and wiped the dust from their shirt. The walk up the stairs beyond the barrier had taken a lot out of them, and the human was eager to find something to get their strength back.

It had always been a dream of the child to leave the underground, they had heard rumors of the world that the monsters above lived in. Vast, open water... lights that cover the sky at night, and another light that shines during the morning... it seemed like paradise compared to the underground they had lived in their whole life.

The human looked up, seeing that they were in the midst of what looked like an ancient castle. Or whatever was left of it... The walls and ceilings were riddled with holes and cracks, and light seemed to pour from them like a river.

Walking forward, the human took in a breath. Even the air up here seemed better-

 _WHOOSH!_ A gust of wind blew at the child, and they looked to see that an ornate spear had been slammed into the ground in front of them.

"Who passes?" A voice demanded. The human had no response. A metal clanking was heard, and the human was able to make out an armoured figure.

"I repeat, who passes?" The figure tilted its head. "Wait... you're a..."

The armor-clad figure stepped into the light. It was tall, seven feet at least. The first thing that the human noticed was the head of the monster... it looked like a goat. Long, floppy ears, white hair, and a short snout. Where it was different from a goat was its human-like eyes, squinting at the child in curiosity. The human looked up, seeing two sharp horns on its head, making it look all the more imposing.

The monster's armor shined in the light, having a torn and faded cloth over the chest. It had some symbol on it... but the human couldn't make it out completely. Another equally dingy and faded cloth hung over its shoulders, and the back of its armor was covered by a cape made of the same material. "...you're a human..." the monster finished. He grabbed his spear and held it by his side. "...my apologies, I thought you were dangerous."

The human waited for the monster to say something else, but it just stood there awkwardly. "Are... you... Um..." the monster's eyes darted around nervously. "I... I'm sorry... I'm just not used to talking to humans. Or... anyone for that matter..."

 _A socially awkward guardian. What else did you expect?_ The human thought to itself.

The monster shook his head. "Let me start over. Greetings, I am the Sentinel of the Ruins. I keep guard over this place and protect its inhabitants." The monster's monotone voice rang throughout the ruins. He held out his hand. "Come with me, I will take you to-"

The monster was hit in the chest by... What were those, pellets?... and flew into the wall.

The human turned in the direction of where the pellets had come from and saw a small, golden flower.

"Howdy..." the flower croaked, which made the child jump in surprise. The flower tilted up, and it became apparent that it was wilted, six tattered petals surrounding the center, which had a toothy grin. The eyes were hidden by the top two petals, which hung forward over the eyes. "...I'm Flowey! Flowey the Flower!"

The human took a step back, this thing was creepy.

"Boy! You almost went with him, didn't you?" The flower nodded at the Sentinel, who was unconscious. "No, no, no... that would've been a mistake!" The human became encircled by the pellets from earlier.

"Say, you look pretty hungry..." Flowey said. "These... 'friendliness pellets'... are good for food as well as helping out best buddies!" The flower smiled. "Don't worry. You can trust me..."

The human decided to chance it. How dangerous could a stupid flower be anyway?

The pellets hit the child, weakening it severely.

"Hee hee hee..." Flowey cackled. "What an idiot!" The petals encircled the human once again. "Why don't I remind you why you humans should STAY underground?!" Flowey laughed as the petals flew closer, the human shut its eyes in fear... suddenly a ball of heat rushed past the human, hitting Flowey and knocking him into the darkness.

It was the Sentinel. He had regained consciousness, and was now picking up the human. "We need to get you out of here!" He said, racing further into the ruins. The human's vision started to darken... its heartbeat slowed...

 _NO..._ The human was not about to die... not now...

They felt themselves being set down on a remarkably comfortable bed, another monster similar to the Sentinel leaning over them. "Rest, my child..." a soft voice spoke. "...You will be better in the morning..."


	2. The Ruins- Toriel's House

The human's eyes snapped open, seeing a bedroom filled with toys and drawings.

 _I must have been dreaming..._ The human thought sadly, the smell of pie filling the air. _Oh, well. Back to.. whatever I was doing before last night-_

The door swung open, revealing the female monster that the Sentinel had taken the child to last night.

 _Nevermind..._

"Ah, good morning, child!" The monster said sweetly. She was shorter than the Sentinel, with smaller horns and eyelashes on her eyes. She was dressed in a dark purple dress, with an odd symbol on the front. Other than those details, she looked a lot like the Sentinel.

"Here, come have breakfast with my son!" She said, smiling gently. "I made butterscotch pie, but if you'd prefer a different pie, I'd be more than happy to make that as well..."

 _I prefer cinnamon, but I'll take any pie any day._ The human thought, then got out of bed and followed the motherly monster to the kitchen. "Oh, silly me! I forgot to tell you my name!" The monster stopped and took a knee so she could be eye level with the human.

"My name is Toriel, and I am the caretaker of the ruins. And your name is...?"

The human opened their mouth to respond, but before they could, the Sentinel walked into the kitchen. "Mom, the pie you made is delicious-" he stopped when he saw the human. "Was I... interrupting... anything..."

"It's fine, my child." Toriel walked over to the Sentinel and hugged him. "You made me so proud, saving this poor, innocent youth..."

The Sentinel smiled softly, then looked at Toriel. "We should probably feed the child..."

"Oh, yes! Of course!" Toriel laughed and walked off to get the pie. "What a mother, am I right?" The Sentinel said, looking at the human. The child looked closer at him, noticing an old scar running from his chin to his nostril... It was noticeable, but not to his detriment. The human was surprised that the Sentinel didn't have a wife here, musing over having a strong and (for a monster) handsome husband.

"Here we are!" Toriel set a pie on the table, smiling at the human. "Have as much of it as you'd like, the two of us have already eaten." The human dug in, devouring every bit of the pie. With every bite, the human felt some of their strength returning, until they felt as strong and healthy as ever. Toriel smiled. "It seems that you liked breakfast..." she said, amused. "Why don't you look around a bit, let my son walk you through the ruins." The Sentinel nodded to his mother, then grabbed his spear.

They walked around for about four hours, the human telling the Sentinel about the underground, and asking about the surface. "To be honest, I've never been outside of the ruins..." He smiled. "I know... I probably seem like a hopeless nerd living in his mom's basement, but that's... well... it's somewhat accurate, but at least I have a job." The Sentinel smiled, then frowned. "Though I suppose it's not really a 'job' if I don't get paid..."

The human cracked a grin. This guy was so awkward.

"To be honest, human... I've always wanted to leave too." The human looked at him curiously, then asked why.

"...Revenge..." The Sentinel said quietly, then shut up when he heard Toriel approaching.

"My goodness, you two wandered off quite a bit! It's a wonder you haven't-"

The human suddenly saw something... It looked like a frog.

"*Ribbit*..." The frog said, looking at the human. "Froggit says hello. *Ribbit*"

The human figured it had several options: talk to a frog (the obvious choice), fight the frog, or just spare it. The human chose the last one, and looked back at Toriel.

"Well...I was about to say that it was a wonder you haven't run into anything, but I suppose that answered my question." She laughed and leaned forward, hugging the child. "I'm so proud of you for making a good choice..."

The human hugged back, enjoying the motherly love that Toriel seemed to have for it. They asked Toriel if she would come with them on their journey around the surface.

"...Journey?" Toriel said hesitantly, trying to hide the fear in her eyes. "I'm sorry, I must not have explained myself. You're staying here... in your home..."

The human reluctantly took Toriel's hand and walked with her back 'home'. On the way, the human wondered about what the Sentinel had meant by 'revenge', why Toriel seemed so scared, and how they were going to make their way further across the surface...


	3. The Ruins- Exit

It was about time. The human had stayed at Toriel's house long enough, and now they wanted out.

Not that Toriel was bothersome. The sweet goat mother had taken great care of the child, and the Sentinel also watched out for the human when he could. But the human wanted to see what the world above was like... and they had to leave Toriel's in order to do so.

The quietly tiptoed across the floor, making their way to the stairs. The Sentinel was on the couch, snoring in his sleep. They made it past the sleeping guardian, and walked downstairs.

Upon reaching the end of the stairs, they saw a long corridor, likely leading to an exit. Determined at the thought of the world just beyond this corridor, they ran as fast as they could. They could just make out a door, when they ran into something and fell back.

"My child..." It was Toriel. "...please go back to sleep. We have a big day tomorrow!" She smiled. "Now, if you'll excuse me, there is something I must do..." Toriel walked towards the door, and the child followed.

She stopped, pain evident in her voice. "My child... do you not understand me? Return to your room! My son will watch over you while you sleep."

 _First off, he's sleeping. Second off, no._ The human continued walking forward.

Toriel turned around and faced the human. "You humans... it's always ended the same. You leave... you beg for mercy... you plead for safety... you weep for death. No, not this time. I'm going to destroy this door, so no one may leave again..."

The human dashed forward, running past Toriel and grabbing the handle on the door. They _had_ to leave...

Toriel grabbed the human by the shirt and pulled them back. "You... you want to leave that badly?" A tear fell from her eye. "Well then... has my home not been enough?!" She glared at the child, who backed up in fear.

"Psst... howdy, buddy!" The human heard the raspy voice of Flowey, and looked to their left. Sure enough, he was there. "Wow! You couldn't last a week without trying to leave! Hee hee.. hey, take it from me, you'd be an IDIOT to fight her with absolutely nothing... but look over there!..." Flowey motioned to Toriel's right, there was a pillar that seemed very unstable.

"You don't always have to fight in order to kill someone..." He snickered. "Sometimes you just have to... pay attention to your surroundings..." The human was horrified. Kill Toriel? Never, never in a thousand lifetimes.

The human walked up to Toriel, not fighting, or talking. They simply spared her.

"You do not understand this world!" She said, holding up her hand. "You cannot survive on peace and mercy alone!" A fireball flew from her hand, and the human leaped out of the way to dodge it. "Prove to me that you are capable of living on your own... and maybe, just maybe, I will let you pass."

The human refused to attack, sparing Toriel yet again.

Toriel continued attacking, lobbing fireballs at the child from every direction. She seemed heartbroken, but had no intention of letting the human leave.

"Hey buddy..." Flowey taunted from the darkness. "...there's always the _smart_ way out..." The human glanced at the pillar. It would be so easy to tip it over, and watch it collapse onto Toriel...

 _Never... I won't do that!_ The human held their hands out, looking at Toriel in earnest. They told Toriel that if she would not let them pass, she was going to have to kill the child.

Toriel's eyes closed solemnly, then opened. "Then... Kill you I shall..." her hands raised, shaking with sorrow, but the fireballs that came out did not touch the child. Again, Toriel raised her hands, but she didn't have the heart to kill.

"Oh, my child..." She begged. "...Please, just turn around. Come back to our home, we can just forget all of this!" She smiled. "My son's probably wondering where we are..."

The human refused.

Toriel pleaded, "If you will not stay with me... then _please,_ just return to the underground. Better you live a long life of sadness than a happy life that ends quickly..." part of the human thought that even Toriel didn't believe her own words.

The human refused again.

"Oh, child!" Toriel fell to her knees, weeping. "Oh, my child! Do not go! I care too much for you to see you go out there... To see you meet your doom... To see you confront Asgore..."

 _Asgore?_ The human thought. _Who's Asgore..._

Toriel did not speak again. She lay on the ground, weeping for the child.

The human walked forward, feeling full of sympathy. They hugged Toriel, promising her that they would be okay, that they would not die.

Toriel held the child, wiping away the last of your tears. "So be it..." she whispered. "Farewell, little one. Before you go..." she reached into her pocket, pulling out a flip phone. "Feel free to contact me whenever you'd like."

 _Aw, man! A flip phone? Seriously?_

Nonetheless, the human smiled and nodded to Toriel, slowly turning and opening the door.

The human looked behind them to say goodbye to Toriel, but she had already left. They sighed and opened the door, stepping into a dark, musty hall. The one patch of light was shining on a bed of golden flowers. The human approached cautiously, aware that Flowey might show up.

The demonic flower popped out if the flower bed. "Wow! You managed to get past her! Not bad, not bad..." The flower snickered, obviously hiding something. "Do you REALLY think you're going to be that lucky? Trust me, pal... _NO ONE..._ gets out there and survives without racking up some XP..." The flower looked up at the child, who was confused at the term 'XP' "What's XP? Trust me... you'll be finding out for yourself sooner or later. As for me..." He turned around. "I've got a few strings to pull... see you later, buddy!"

Flowey laughed insanely, disappearing back into the flower bed.

The human shook its head at Flowey, moving forward to the final door. The human walked outside, their eyes widening at the landscape that lay in front of them...


	4. The Beach- West End

It was a beach. A long, pristine coastline on the edge of a blue ocean. It was a near-perfect scene of tranquility.

Along the beach were several hotels. All of them seemed to belong to the same company, the 'Suite Dreams' hotel organization. The human walked onto the beach, they could see for miles...

This was entirely new. All the water surrounding the island... The feeling of sand beneath their feet... the sky...

 _The sky!_ The human had always wanted to see the sky... They looked up, seeing trails of white, fluffy clouds crossing the sky, which seemed to be of a brighter blue color than the sea. For the first time, the human could see the sun...

The child got so caught up in admiring the sky, that a wave crashed towards them, sweeping the human off their feet and dragging them to sea. They clawed at the surface of the water, trying to take in a breath, but was immediately pulled back under. They struggled... trying more and more to escape. The human broke the surface again and gasped. They called for help, maybe someone would come...

As they were pulled under once more, their vision began to fade. How lame, to finally achieve a life goal, and then die on accident. The human's movements slowed... suddenly, they heard an odd noise, like a triumphant laugh...

The human felt themselves being dragged out of the water, and tossed onto the sand. They coughed, spraying seawater out of their mouth. "NYE-HEH-HEH-HA!" A voice laughed. "I HAVE SAVED YET ANOTHER POOR SOUL FROM DROWNING! HOW MUCH MORE GREAT CAN I GET?" The human rolled onto their back, seeing a skeleton with a life buoy. The skeleton was dressed like a lifeguard, with red swimming trunks and a white sleeveless tee.

The human screamed, backing away from the skeleton.

"EEE! A HUMAN!" The skeleton screamed, backing away from the human.

The child's breathing became heavy, looking at the skeleton in fear. "WAIT... YOU'RE SCARED OF ME? NYE-HEH-HA! NO LONGER AM I SIMPLY THE GREAT PAPYRUS, LIFEGUARD OF THE WEST END, BUT NOW I AM THE GREAT PAPYRUS, THE INTIMIDATING AND COMPLETELY COMPETENT LIFEGUARD OF THE WEST END!"

The human's fear left them as they burst out laughing at the skeleton's mannerisms.

"WAIT... YOU'RE NOT SCARED ANYMORE?" The skeleton sighed sadly. "I SHOULD'VE KNOWN THAT WOULDN'T HAVE LASTED..." The human giggled again, asking Papyrus where they were at. "AH! EXCELLENT QUESTION! THIS IS THE WEST END OF THE ISLAND OF TE DEUM! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, SERVE AS A LIFEGUARD ON THIS TREACHEROUS PATCH OF SEASHORE!"

The human looked at the seashore, which was relatively calm. Well, except for a few waves that could only get the most oblivious of people.

"NOT ONLY AM I AN INCREDIBLY TALENTED AND HANDSOME LIFEGUARD, I AM AN UP-AND-COMING MEMBER OF THE ROYAL GUARD!" Papyrus paused. "WELL... TECHNICALLY I'M NOT CONSIDERED 'UP-AND-COMING'... SOME WOULD SAY I'M MORE OF AN 'ASPIRING' ROYAL GUARDSMAN. BUT NO MATTER!" Papyrus helped the human to their feet. "NOW, I SHALL TAKE YOU TO MY HOUSE, HUMAN, AND SHOW-"

Papyrus jumped, his eyes popping. "WAIT! YOU'RE A HUMAN! NYE-HEH-HEH-HEH-HEH-HEH!" Papyrus cackled triumphantly. "I'VE FINALLY DONE IT! I'VE CAPTURED A MYTHICAL HUMAN! I'VE ALWAYS BEEN TOLD THAT THEY WERE JUST FAIRY TALES! BUT NOW, I'LL BE FAMOUS THROUGHOUT THE ISLAND! I'LL BE ABLE TO GET ROOMS FOR FREE AT THE HOTELS! I'LL BE THE ENVY OF MONSTERS EVERYWHERE! I WILL EARN MY RIGHTFUL PLACE ON THE ROYAL GUARD..."

As Papyrus continued applauding himself, the human sneaked off, not really in the mood to be captured.

"...AND MY BROTHER WILL... WAIT! WHERE DID THE HUMAN GO?" The human looked as Papyrus dove back into the water, searching in the sand for the human. "HERE, HUMAN, HUMAN, HUMAN..."

The child laughed at Papyrus, it was too bad they couldn't be friends. They walked away from the beach and towards the hotels, wondering what else awaited them on this journey.


	5. The Beach- 'Suite Dreams' Hotel

Advancing further, the human encountered another local monster. This one was called a Sandflee.

 _Hahaha... sandflee. Like sandflea. Hahaha..._

The monster looked at the human, seemingly about to prepare an attack, then turned around and fled

 _Well, that was odd.._ The human thought, walking into the door of one of the hotels. "Welcome to the Suite Dreams Hotel!" The monster behind the desk called out. "We hope your dreams are as sweet as our suites!"

 _Too many puns..._ The human thought, walking to the counter. They asked for a room, to which the monster replied, "Of course! One night at our hotel costs 50 g!"

 _What's the currency up here?_ The human thought, looking at the monster in confusion. "Um... you do have gold, correct?..."

The human sighed and walked outside, wondering where they were going to find a source of gold. On the way, they saw three sand dunes. They sighed and poked at one of them in boredom.

The sand dune collapsed, revealing 50 g.

 _How convenient..._ The child smiled, grabbing the money and heading towards the hotel.

Once they got a room, the human looked out the window, taking in the view of the sea. It was beautiful. They head a distant, 'Nye-heh-heh!' and looked to see Papyrus jumping out of the sand like a dolphin, then diving back in to search for the child. The human shook their head in amusement, then went to their bed to take a nap.

"Oh... someone else is staying in this room..." an overly sad voice rang out. The human jumped, looking around the room, but didn't see anyone.

"Oh... I think you can't see me. Sorry..." The voice said again. The child got up from the bed, looking under it for any signs of life. "Don't worry, I'll just be on my way... sorry..." The door opened on its own, and then shut after a second.

 _Um..._

The door creaked back open, and the sad voice said, "Oh, by the way... I'm Napstablook, in case you were wondering..." a ghost appeared beside the door, looking at the human. "... You were probably trying to sleep, weren't you? I won't disturb you anymore." Napstablook drifted away, mumbling, "Oooooooooooooooo..."

The human sighed and lay back, trying to get some sleep.

While they were asleep, the human thought they heard a voice. Maybe it was a dream... but it felt like a memory...

' _These beds are comfy, huh?'_ The voice asked. ' _How'd you get up here again anyways?'_ the human felt like answering, but didn't. ' _Oh, that's okay. We don't have to talk about that. What's your name?'_ The human spoke their name, and the voice responded, ' _Really? That's a neat name. My name is-'_

The human woke up, only to see that Napstablook was back. A tray of orange juice and waffles floated beside him. "Hi... thought you might want some room service... I thought breakfast in bed would be a good way to start the day." The tray floated over and set itself down beside the child. "'Suite' dreams. Ooooooooooo..." Napstablook floated away again. The human shrugged and started eating.

"Hey," Napstablook appeared again, making the human jump. "I thought I should apologize. I said 'Suite' dreams to you before I left, when it's actually eight in the morning. Sorry if I made you think it was nighttime..." Napstablook faded away again.

The human walked downstairs after breakfast, they'd had enough of this hotel. They passed the monster at the front desk, who asked the child, "How was room service?" The child thought for a minute.

 _Very efficient and depressing at the same time._ They thought, walking outside. The child saw something glinting in the trash can beside them, it was some gold. The human eagerly dug it out, and ran back inside, leaving it as a tip for Napstablook.

The human left the hotel, hearing Napstablook from the outside.

"This is a lot of money... looks like the human dug it out if the trash to try to be nice... sounds like I inconvenienced them... oh, no..."

The human walked off, looking for somewhere else to go, but stopped in their tracks. A monster was blocking the way...

"NYE-HEH-HEH-HA!" It was Papyrus. "I'VE CAPTURED YOU ONCE AGAIN!"


	6. The Beach- Papyrus's House

Papyrus's house was located on the coast of the island, not too far from the hotels. He had tied the child up to a chair, keeping them in his room.

The door opened, Papyrus had changed into a chef's outfit.

"HUMAN!" Papyrus announced. "IT HAS COME TO MY ATTENTION THAT YOU HAVE BEEN A COOPERATIVE PRISONER! AS A REWARD FOR YOUR HELP IN THIS SITUATION, YOU ARE TO BE REWARDED ACCORDINGLY WITH SOME SPAGHETTI!"

The human perked up. Spaghetti sounded amazing right about now...

Papyrus set a plate in front of the child. The plate had a pile of uncooked noodles, topped with some spaghetti sauce and burnt meat. How delicious.

"ENJOY YOUR DELICIOUS REWARD, HUMAN! NYE-HEH-HEH!" Papyrus shut the door, leaving the human tied up to the chair. There was no way the child could eat the 'spaghetti', even if they'd wanted to.

The human looked around the room, noticing Papyrus's bed, which was shaped like a shark. Several drawings of Papyrus becoming a royal guard were tacked to the wall, as well as one picture of him standing with a shorter, pudgier skeleton. That particular picture bore the title, 'PAPYRUS AND SANS, THE BEST BIG BROTHER EVER!'

The human waited for Papyrus to come back, their nose filled with the smell of burnt meat and tomatoes.

Eventually, Papyrus opened the door, seeming rather saddened. "WELL, HUMAN... IT SEEMS THAT I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, AM NOT LEGALLY ALLOWED TO HARBOR CRIMINALS... EVEN IF IT _IS_ TO KEEP THE PUBLIC SAFE... BUT NO MATTER! I SHALL ACHIEVE MY DREAM IN SOME OTHER FASHION!" Papyrus began untying the human, picking up the plate of spaghetti. "HMM... IT SEEMS YOU REFUSED YOUR MEAL... PERHAPS BEING CAPTIVE ISN'T THE BEST SITUATION TO EAT. I SHALL EAT THIS BEAUTIFULLY CRAFTED MEAL SO YOU WILL NOT FEEL GUILTY FOR LETTING IT SPOIL!"

Papyrus dumped the plate down his throat, and quickly grimaced in disgust. "IT'S... WELL..." He gagged. "...I SUPPOSE IT WAS A LITTLE TOO COLD FOR EATING." Papyrus sighed and sat down. "WHY CAN'T I DO ANYTHING RIGHT?..." He mourned, flopping on his bed.

The child felt sorry for Papyrus, it must be sad to have such ambition and absolutely no payoff.

The child patted Papyrus's back, telling them that they did a great job capturing them.

"HMM... I DO SUPPOSE I HAVE A KNACK FOR CAPTURING HUMANS... PERHAPS I SHOULD SHOW YOU TO UNDYNE! YOU'LL TELL HER HOW WELL I DID CAPTURING YOU, AND THEN SHE'LL MAKE ME A MEMBER OF THE ROYAL GUARD!" Papyrus gave a fist bump. "THAT IS, AFTER SHE BEATS YOU UP MORE PAINFULLY THAN ANY BULLY YOU'VE EVER COME ACROSS... BUT THAT IS A MINOR DETAIL!"

The human quickly shook their head, that didn't seem like a great plan. They pointed to the picture of Papyrus and his brother.

"OH, SANS?" Papyrus said. "I KNOW HE'D BE PROUD OF ME, BUT HE'S TOO BUSY DOING..." his face reddened with frustration. "...ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!"

Papyrus began ranting. "HE'S THE OWNER OF TE DEUM'S LARGEST HOTEL CHAIN, AND HE'S TOO MUCH OF A LAZYBONES TO EVEN BUY A ROOM AT HIS OWN HOTEL!" Papyrus was shaking his fist in frustration. "HIS BUSINESS MAKES MILLIONS, BUT HE DIDN'T FEEL LIKE KEEPING UP WITH ALL HIS MONEY, SO HE STARTED GIVING HIS EMPLOYEES RIDICULOUS PAYCHECKS! THAT DEPRESSING GHOST THAT WORKS ROOM SERVICE IS PAID UPWARDS OF 500 G AN HOUR!"

The human chuckled. This guy paid his employees lots of money because he was too lazy to handle it? They definitely wanted to see this...

"SPEAKING OF WHICH, SANS IS ACTUALLY COMING OVER TONIGHT FOR DINNER. THOUGH I BELIEVE HE WILL USE THIS AS AN ATTEMPT TO TRICK ME INTO LETTING HIM LIVE IN MY BASEMENT. I WILL NOT STAND FOR HIS BUFFOONERY!"

The human laughed. Sans sounded hilarious-

Just then, the door to Papyrus's room opened, revealing a short figure in the shadows.

"Heya, human." The figure said. "It's nice finally gettin' to meet ya." The figure stepped forward. "I've been hangin' out in the basement for a few days... I could hear Papyrus ranting about me from all the way down there!"

"SANS! YOU ARE A TITAN OF INDUSTRY! YOU SHOULD BE LIVING IN A MANSON, NOT LEAVING YOUR SOCKS ALL OVER MY BASEMENT!" Papyrus snorted. The figure turned to the human, stepping into the light.

Now that the child could see him better, they noticed that Sans was wearing a tan beach hat. His business attire included a wrinkled button-up polo, which was unbuttoned halfway down to reveal a plain white t-shirt. Sans was also wearing khaki shorts, and two leather flip-flops completed his outfit. He was laid back incarnate.

"'Sup, bro?" The skeleton said, somehow speaking through the goofy grin on his face. "SANS, THIS IS NOT A TIME FOR GOOFING OFF!" "Goofing off?" Sans said innocently. "I just wanted to hear all about your 'kid'napping."

The pun was so terrible, the child laughed.

"KIDNAPPING? NO, BROTHER! WHAT I DID WAS A PROFESSIONAL ACT OF- OH MY GOSH! YOU MADE A PUN!" Papyrus facepalmed as he realized what his brother had said. "SANS, YOU ARE RIDICULOUS!"

"You don't say..." Sans winked. "Sounds like you've got a bone to pick with me..."

"WHY, INDEED I DO! I WILL NOT ALLOW YOU TO-" Papyrus paused, realizing Sans had made yet another cringy joke. "NYEEAAGGHH! SANS!"

Sans chuckled. "Hey, did you hear about how my construction employees celebrated building the new hotel the other day?" He asked. Papyrus looked puzzled. "WHY NO, SANS. I DON'T KNOW. PARTICULARLY BECAUSE I HADN'T HEARD THAT YOU'D BUILT YET ANOTHER HOTEL."

"Oh, you betcha. The construction guys were _raising the roof_ at that party..."

Papyrus left the room. An infuriated, 'NYEAAAAGGHHH!' could be heard from outside the house.

"Hehehe... I just can't give that poor guy a break, can I?" Sans looked at the human. "By the way, I'm Sans the skeleton. I'm kinda supposed to be reporting humans to the captain of the royal guard, but... eh... I don't really feel like it." Sans winked. "Heya, I know a great place to go eat at. What says you?"

The human nodded in agreement.

"Then it's settled. Turn right after you pass the last hotel, and you'll see the place." Sans walked towards the closet. The human frowned, asking Sans why he wouldn't go with them.

"Don't worry. I'm taking a shortcut." He opened the closet door and walked inside. "Later, kiddo." The door slammed shut.

The child walked forward and opened it back up, but the closet was empty.


	7. The Beach- The Sandbar

It took the human a while to find the restaurant that Sans had been talking about. There seemed to be a ton of restaurants past the last hotel (which was having its roof raised, literally), and no clear way to figure out which one Sans was at.

But then they saw it... a small, average looking restaurant with dim lightning. It seemed like the perfect place for a lazy businessman to eat.

The human walked inside, looking at the sign that read, 'The Sandbar'. The restaurant was surprisingly full, monsters of all different sorts dining at this quiet bar.

Sans was sitting on a stool in front of the bar, and nodded at the human when he spotted them. "Glad you could make it. Wondering what took you so long, though."

The child hopped onto the stool next to Sans. As soon as they sat down, a loud _SNAP!_ was heard, making everyone but Sans jump. The child got very embarrassed, they thought they had broken the stool. Sans leaned over and reached underneath the legs of the stool.

"Huh..." He said, holding something up. "...some weirdo must've put snap pops underneath your stool..." The human giggled and started looking at the menu. "Nice variety of options, huh?" Sans chuckled. The only two items on the menu were a hot dog, and a burger.

"Hey, Grillby," Sans called, and the monster behind the bar turned their head. They were... well... made out of fire. "Hook me up with a hot dog, will ya?" Grillby nodded and went back to the grill to cook. "Sometimes I wish I owned a place like this... quiet, calm, always supplying you with food..."

The human's stomach growled, but they had no money to buy something to eat. Sans seemed to notice, but didn't comment on it. "So, you made it past our barrier, huh? How'd a kid like you break through something that tough?"

The child asserted that they were simply determined enough to pass.

"Ah... determination, huh?" Sans's voice sounded amused, but the two pupils in his sockets seemed uneasy. "Y'know, human souls usually have more determination than us monsters... it's a wonder how we beat you guys in the first place..." The human tilted their head, asking what Sans meant by their 'soul'.

"Oh, a soul? Nobody's told you about that?" He whistled in surprise. "Someone's not giving out all the details, huh?" Sans leaned forward. "While you've been up here... have you ever... felt a... movement... in you? As if you're moving through chapters in a story?"

The child was surprised, and nodded. That's exactly what it felt like.

"Well, that's your soul. The very culmination of your being, the source of your determination. But you..." The uneasy look returned to his eyes. "...you're just chock-full of the stuff, huh?" Sans stopped as Grillby set a hot dog down in front of him. "Hey, would you mind cookin' a burger for my friend here? Don't worry..." He winked at the human. "...it's on me."

When the human got their food, Sans nudged them in the arm. "Heya, why don't you pour some ketchup on that burger?" The human smiled and nodded, grabbing the ketchup bottle and turning it over. It worked fine, but instead of it being ketchup that was poured out of it... it was mustard.

"Huh... looks like that weirdo swapped the condiments, too."

The human begrudgingly ate their ruined burger, then thanked Sans for dinner. "Don't mention it, pal." Sans replied. "Before you go, there's something I need to ask you..."

The whole restaurant darkened, and everyone stopped talking. A spotlight shined on Sans and the confused child.

"Have you ever heard of a **vengeful guardian**?" Sans asked, his voice deadly serious. The human looked at him, freaking out when they saw that his eye sockets were hollow. The human guessed that Sans was talking about the Sentinel of the ruins. They were the only guardian they knew of that wanted revenge for something. The human quickly nodded yes.

"So you know all about her, then..." Sans sighed. "The **hat shop owner**." Sans continued staring at the human. "I was over there the other day, trying to buy a hat, when I noticed something was wrong with the shop owner. I walked over to her, and she started freaking out, sputtering nonsense about a vengeful guardian, and the island of Te Deum in ashes..." Sans leaned forward. "Weird, huh?..."

The human could only think to ask what 'Te Deum' meant.

"'Te Deum', means 'monster' in Latin." He answered. The human was surprised that Sans knew that. "What? You think just because I'm a lazybones means I don't have a brain? No, kid. I've seen things... worked on things..." His mind seemed to drift off for a second, then he snapped back to reality.

"Oh, sorry, buddy. Was just thinking about our prophecy..."

The human asked to know more about the prophecy.

"It's called, the 'Malum Prophecy'." He responded. The child frowned, wanting to know more. "What's Malum? Ah, I don't feel like explaining another Latin word..." He winked. "You should be finding out for yourself sooner or later."

Sans hopped off the stool. "Welp, I'm off." He left some money for Grillby, then walked towards the bathroom. "Oh, by the way, be nice to my brother. If you don't, well..." a blue light flashed in Sans's eye, and he chuckled. "But hey, I like you, I don't think you'd do anything you'd regret. Seeya." Sans walked into the bathroom, and was gone.


	8. The Beach- Bridge

The human was on their way out of the beach area. They wandered towards a bridge that seemed to serve as an exit, picking up any pieces of gold they could find on the way.

While they were walking, another monster encountered the child, this one appeared to be called, 'Beachdrake'.

It didn't take long for the human to spare the Beachdrake, and they watched the little monster go on their way. They got to the bridge, about to take their path to freedom, when an all-too-familiar laugh resounded behind them. They turned around to see Papyrus, ready for yet another capture. Sans was standing next to him, but obviously wasn't as thrilled, since he had fallen asleep.

"HUMAN!" Papyrus called out. "THE TIME HAS COME FOR YOU TO BE HANDED OVER TO UNDYNE!" Papyrus laughed again. "SANS, SEIZE THAT HUMAN!" Sans continued snoring. "SANS!" Papyrus screamed in his face.

"Wh-wha?" Sans opened his eyes. "Capture the human? Isn't that your job, bro?"

"YES OF COURSE IT IS!" Papyrus shouted. "BUT THE STORY WILL SOUND SO MUCH BETTER IF I ORDERED A SUBORDINATE OF MINE AROUND!" Papyrus pointed at the child again. "SO, SANS... CAPTURE THAT HUMAN!"

"...zzz..."

"SANS!"

"Hmm? Morning, bro."

"SANS! YOU'RE NOT HELPING!"

"Of course I'm helping. I'm offering my support."

Papyrus gritted his teeth. "SANS, OUR GOAL WAS TO CAPTURE THE HUMAN! IT'S A MIRACLE THAT THE HUMAN HASN'T RUN OFF ALREADY!" The human had taken a seat on the bridge, munching on some pumpkin rings while they watched this argument go down.

"How about you just go over there and capture the human yourself?" Sans asked. "BECAUSE!" Papyrus snapped. "YOU. ARE. MY. SUBORDINATE!"

Sans chuckled. "You remember that I'm the big brother, right?" Papyrus rolled his eyes. "MAYBE SO... BUT YOU COULD ALSO SAY THAT I AM... THE BIG _GER_ BROTHER!" Papyrus laughed at his joke as Sans tried not to say anything. "So, are you, uh, gonna grab the human?" "OH. RIGHT, OF COURSE."

Papyrus walked towards the child, who backed up. Sans poked his head out from behind Papyrus, whispering, "Don't worry. He's not a threat."

Papyrus corned the human. "HUMAN... THIS LONG AWAITED CONFRONTATION IS FINALLY UPON US!" He puffed out his chest and continued monologuing. "OUR FIGHT WILL BE A BATTLE FOR THE AGES! ONE THAT FUTURE GENERATIONS OF MONSTERS WILL REMEMBER AS, 'THE GREAT VICTORY OF THE GREAT PAPYRUS!' NYE-HEH-HEH-HEH!"

The human rolled their eyes at Papyrus, getting ready for him to attack.

"ALRIGHTY THEN... LET'S GET THIS STARTED!" Bones shot from the ground, flying at the child, who managed to duck them all. Papyrus cackled and fired bones from another direction. The child dove to the side, but got hit by one of them.

 _Ouch._ That hadn't hurt too bad, but they felt like there was still more to come.

"WHY AREN'T YOU FIGHTING BACK?" Papyrus asked. "LIFEGUARD PAPYRUS NEEDS A CHALLENGE IN ORDER FOR THIS BATTLE TO GO DOWN IN HISTORY!"

 _You want a challenge, buddy?_ The child thought. They told a bad joke, watching Papyrus shudder in horror.

"NYEEAAGGHH! HOW DID YOU KNOW THAT BAD JOKES ARE THE ONLY THINGS THAT BREAK MY CONCENTRATION?!" Papyrus took a short break to recollect himself, apparently the joke was that bad.

The human told a bad pun about skeletons, and Papyrus cringed in horror. But he still wasn't letting the child spare him.

"YOU WILL NOT END THIS BATTLE!" Papyrus said. "MY PLACE ON THE ROYAL GUARD MUST BE EARNED!" Papyrus stepped up his attacks, watching as the human continued dodging everything. The bad jokes weren't getting Papyrus annoyed enough to stop fighting. _Maybe I could try... no..._

The human had one last, really bad idea. But they had nothing left to lose, so...

The human decided to 'flirt', slightly wiggling their hips to get Papyrus freaked out enough to stop.

"WH-WHAT? ARE YOU... FLIRTING WITH ME? I THOUGHT THAT EVEN YOU WERE ABOVE THAT!" Papyrus was too shocked to attack, and the human tried it again. "HMM... ODDLY EFFECTIVE. PERHAPS I SHALL DO THE SAME, AND BEAT YOU AT YOUR OWN GAME!"

Papyrus flexed his arm to show off his biceps, then hurled more bones at the human.

The human continued dodging, trying to think up of something else to do...

Papyrus flexed a few more times before realizing that skeletons don't have muscles. "GIVEN UP YET, HUMAN? I'M JUST GETTING STARTED!" Papyrus began using gel to slick his hair back, but he was starting to lose focus. The bones were getting scattered and inaccurate. The human just needed to hang on a little while longer...

Sans watched in confusion as Papyrus continued applying gel. "Uh, bro... you know that skeletons don't have hair, right?" "I DON'T?" Papyrus shouted in confusion. "I MEAN... OF COURSE I DON'T. WHY WOULD I?" Sans rolled his eyes. "Look, if you really want that kid to like you, you've gotta be the real you." Sans suggested. "The harmless, lifeguard-y, non-confrontational you." The human smiled. Sans had their back.

"HMM... YOU'RE RIGHT, SANS!" Papyrus lit up with gratitude. "THANKS, BROTHER!" Sans shrugged. "Don't mention it. Now let's just let the human go-"

"IF I WANT THE HUMAN TO LIKE ME, THEN I'VE GOT TO BE AS GREAT AS THE GREAT PAPYRUS CAN GET!" Papyrus pulled out some sunscreen to apply to his nose.

"Uh, Papyrus... you don't have a nose..."

The human tried sparing Papyrus again, but he still kept fighting. "I HOPE YOU'RE READY, HUMAN! ITS TIME FOR MY **SPECIAL ATTACK**!" The human felt something change inside them, they tried to move, but they couldn't move and dodge as freely as they used to.

"NOW YOUR SOUL IS BLUE! NYE-HEH-HEH-HA!"

The human was having more difficulty dodging, they were getting weaker and weaker, but suddenly... Papyrus just stopped. "WAIT... ALL THIS FLIRTATIOUS CONFRONTATION... NEITHER OF US IS GOING TO WIN, HUMAN. BECAUSE..." Papyrus looked at the child. "I JUST DON'T FEEL THAT WAY ABOUT YOU..."

 _I don't either. I just didn't want to die!_

"I KNOW THIS MAY BE DIFFICULT FOR YOU TO HEAR... BUT MY STANDARDS ARE JUST TOO HIGH TO BE MET! DO KNOW THAT I MEAN THIS IN THE KINDEST OF WAYS..." The human couldn't believe it. Papyrus was turning them down, even when the human hadn't been taking it seriously.

"ALTHOUGH... I HOPE THAT YOU WOULD STILL WANT TO BE FRIENDS. PERHAPS WE CAN JUST FORGET THAT ALL OF THIS EVER HAPPENED." _Sounds good to me._ The child thought, attempting to spare Papyrus one more time.

This time, Papyrus spared the child as well.

"WELL, GOOD LUCK ON YOUR JOURNEY, HUMAN!" Papyrus yelled. "AND REMEMBER, ALWAYS STRIVE TO BE AS GREAT AS YOU CAN... ALTHOUGH YOU MAY NEVER BE AS GREAT AS ME! NYE-HEH-HEH!" Papyrus turned around and marched home. Sans nodded politely to the human.

"Thanks for making my brother's day a little happier, kid. I'm rootin' for you." He held out his hand to shake, and the human gladly obliged...

 _PFFFFFFFFFTTTTTTTT!_

"Heheheheh... knew that trick would come in handy one day." Sans chuckled. "I guess I should go get Papyrus before he gets lost..."

Sans turned around and walked away, down the path opposite to the one Papyrus had taken.


	9. The East End- Fields

The bridge led the child to the east end, which was a vast plain of grass, sloping up the side of a mountain. Far in the distance was a magnificent castle, adorned with towers, banners, and windows.

The human beamed at the sight of such a beautiful place. They looked around more, seeing a sign that gave directions for several locations.

CASTLE- STRAIGHT AHEAD

TE DEUM MOUNTAIN- FOLLOW RIGHT PATH

TEM ISLAND- FOLLOW LEFT PATH

Something was urging the human to go to the castle, so they walked straight ahead. Everything was so beautiful here... the human thought that someone else should get to hear about it. They pulled out their phone, calling Toriel's number.

 _Ring... ring..._ Nobody answered. The human tried again. _Ring... ring..._ Nobody answered.

"She's not going to pick up the phone, you know." A familiar, quiet voice spoke. The child jumped, looking at where the sound came from.

"She's too hurt over you leaving to answer." It was the Sentinel. "Greetings, human. It's nice to see that you're doing well out here."

 _If by 'doing well', you mean getting confronted with a monster at every turn, then yes. I'm doing very well._ The human asked the Sentinel why he had left the ruins.

"What? Why am I here? I'm here because... well... you inspired me to leave, child." He sighed and looked out over the fields. "I've been meaning to leave for a long time..."

The child was flattered that they were the ones who inspired the Sentinel to finally leave his home. The human asked what the Sentinel was going to do now.

"There's something I've been meaning to do..." The Sentinel started, obviously intending on a cheesy, heart-to-heart monologue. "Toriel didn't always live in the ruins. She used to have a happy life with the other monsters. A family... a home...and then it was all snatched away from her."

"I don't understand exactly why... but I do know it had something to do with Asgore, the king." The Sentinel shut his eyes in anger. "It's the way she acts whenever I mention him, it's like he hurt her."

The human hadn't heard much about the king, and asked the Sentinel what he thought of Asgore.

"What do I think of Asgore? I'll tell you what I think of him..." The Sentinel opened his eyes, which seemed to be filled with fury. "He's murdered human children for his own gain. Children just like you. And Toriel... she used to have another child. An adopted human..."

The human's eyes widened. The king of this island was a child killer? No wonder Sans was trying to keep them away from being handed over to the royal guard.

"I think that's why Toriel is always so distressed when I bring up Asgore. I think... I think he murdered her child." The Sentinel looked down sadly. He didn't look like he wanted to talk anymore.

The human looked back at the sign. The castle had lost its appeal, and the human was slightly worried that the mountain was a volcano. _Onward to Tem Island..._ The human thought.

The human started following the quiet path, gazing around at the peaceful surroundings. It seemed like absolutely nothing bad could possibly happen here.

Suddenly, something flew at the child, nicking their shirt, and impaling itself in the ground.

It was a bright blue spear.

The human slowly turned around, seeing a scary figure covered in armor. The armor, strangely, was the same design as the Sentinel's, except the frontal banner of the armor looked good as new. That odd symbol that had been popping up everywhere was on it. It was hard to describe this symbol, it looked like a pair of wings at the top, and three triangles below it. The figure dug their foot into the ground, like a bull readying itself for a fight.

The child realized that this had to be the captain of the Royal Guard. It was Undyne.

The human bolted the other way, spears whizzing past their ears. Undyne seemed to be doing some serious parkour, leaping from boulders, doing somersaults, and making insane leaps. The human kept running along the path, seeing a long bridge that extended to another island. They ran, looking back to see if Undyne was still there.

There was no one. The human was alone.

While they caught their breath, the human thought about how much Undyne seemed to care about capturing them. It made them think about the things they cared about... The human tried to call Toriel again.

 _Ring... ring..._

Nobody answered.


	10. The East End- Tem Island

The human walked across the narrow bridge, looking over the smaller island that lay before them. Whatever this place was, it looked uninhabited, and a thick veil of fog shrouded the island. They reached the end of the bridge, but was stopped by a new monster.

This monster seemed different, almost like a special enemy. The human said hello to the monster.

"hOI!" The little monster squeaked. "I'm TemMIE!" The human burst out laughing at their voice and terrible grammar, but Temmie was not to be taken lightly. They turned upside down, then hurled themselves at the human. The child was hit in the gut, and fell on their back.

"TemMIE wan TEM FLAKS!" Temmie said, vibrating intensely.

The human sighed and checked their pockets, but they had never heard of, or seen, Tem Flakes. The human politely told Temmie that they didn't have what they wanted.

"No TeM flayks? NUU! *dies*" Temmie flipped over, their eyes being crossed out, and then returned to their normal, vibrating self.

 _What is this thing..._ the child thought, as Temmie forgot her other attack.

The human stood for a while, wondering how to spare this thing. They looked up at Temmie, only to raise an eyebrow in confusion. Her face had seemingly vibrated away from her body, and was now simply floating beside her.

The human offered to let Temmie pet them. "AWWWWW! TeM wAnna pet coot human! but hooman alerjic to TeM!" Temmie forgot her other attack again, and finally let the human spare them.

The child walked forward, hearing a distant sound of odd music. They turned a corner, seeing a small village on the shore of the island. Looking around, they saw a poorly constructed sign that read: 'hOI! Welcom tu... TEM ISLAND!' The child walked forward, seeing Tems walk to and from their houses on the beach, occasionally sticking their heads in the sand for no apparent reason, and vibrating on the ground.

The child walked up to one, and it said, "hOI! Im temmie! And dis is my fwend, temmie!" The Tem motioned to another Tem on her right. The child walked over to it to see what that Tem had to say. "hOI! Im Temmie! And dis is my fwend, temmie!" The Tem motioned to her friend behind her, and the human walked over to it. "hOI! I'm temmie! Don forgot my friend!" The Temmie pointed to the right, at their friend. The human shrugged and walked over to it.

"Hi." It said in a monotone voice. "I'm Rob."

After the human took a small break to laugh, they continued exploring the island. They observed one of their houses, which was just a cardboard box. In fact, _all_ of the houses were cardboard boxes. A Tem waddled over to the child and sat on their foot. "TeM wuld LOOOOOOVE to pet cute human, but hoOMan allergic to tem. Dat OK... tem understan... Tem... ALSO alerjic to TeM!"

 _Wait, so that means-_ immediately, the human's suspicions were confirmed. Boils popped up all over Temmie's face.

"bOIls!" Temmie shouted.

Two more signs were set in front of a small cave, one reading, 'HOI! Shud chek... TEM SHOP!' and the other one, 'yaYA! AGREES! Go vizit... TEM SHOP!' The child walked inside of the small cave, seeing a Tem with a blue visor on her head. "HOI! Welcome to... TEM SHOP!" This particular Temmie's face moved disproportionately around its head, taking in all of the plain scenery with intrigue.

The child looked at what was on the walls, seeing three different prices for Temmie Flakes, random articles of clothing tacked to the walls, and several picture frames. But instead of pictures, the picture frames had images drawn on them in crayon.

"hooman buy TeM flakes?" Temmie suggested, pointing to the 'On Sale' Tem Flakes, which cost 2g.

They bought the Tem Flakes, opening the box up to see what they tasted like. To the human's surprise, these fabled Tem Flakes were only ripped-up pieces of construction paper. They sighed and tried to sell a butterscotch pie they were carrying.

"WHOAS! You gotta... BUTTSPIE?!" Tem shook in happiness. "Hnnnnn... TEM alwaYS wanna buttspie, but TeM gotta pay for home mortgag." Tem started sweating in apprehension. "PPPPPPPPPPP! I gotta hav that buttsPIE! Tem buy buttspie for... 100 g?"

Normally the human would've accepted this offer, but they would feel bad for making Tem miss out on a house payment, so they declined. "B-but.. p!" Tem doubled the price, and the human accepted. "THANK!" Tem shouted. The child headed out of the cave, hearing a happy, "bOI!" from Temmie.

The human explored the island a bit, seeing similar things that were as random and silly as the shop had been. There was a 'very famus' carving of Tem on a cliff face, but it had been carved sideways. A separate group of Temmies were trying to fly off a tree. They were taping soda cans to their back, vibrating intensely to pop the cans, and would then shoot of the tree. They would stay in the air for a few minutes, then slowly float to the ground.

After the human declined to purchase a stock in the local 'qwiksand pools', they decided to leave the island. All the Temmies waved goodbye, some of them vibrating over to the human and hugging their legs. The child told them all goodbye, then walked across the bridge to search for a new path to take.


	11. The East End- Mountain Path

The human hid behind the boulder, clutching the wound in their left shoulder. They quickly munched on a few Tem Flakes, trying to heal up before she came back... as they finished the last of them, the enormous boulder shielding the child was supplexed, Undyne looming above them. The human could only wonder to itself, _How did this happen?_

 **Thirty Minutes Earlier...**

The child was well on their way to the mountain. The surrounding monsters had been talking of a secret lair inside it. Some said that a ghost lived there, others said it was the home of the royal scientist. Whatever was there, the human wanted to find out.

On their way, the human heard a noise in the tall grass that was on either side of the path. They took a careful step forward, peeking into it. There was something in there-

"AAAH!" A small monster leaped from the bushes, pinning the child to the ground. "You're under arrest, human! I'm going to hand you over to Undyne immediately!" The child tried to scramble away, but stopped when they heard the monster... laughing?

"Haha haha! Yo, was that cool or what?" The child frowned. This monster was pretending?

"Hey, in my opinion, there's NOTHING cooler than to pretend to be helping Undyne capture humans!" The monster hopped off the human. "It's the best!"

The human got up and rubbed the back of their head. This monster was probably just a kid. They sighed in relief.

"Yo, I heard that Undyne was spotted chasing a human to that weird island! Maybe we can see her if we go back!" The human shook their head in earnest, they weren't in the mood for a pummeling.

"That's OK! Maybe we'll spot her on the path to the mountain! She's so smart, she's probably trying to flank them!" The human reluctantly agreed, following the monster kid to the mountain.

"Yo... I heard that this was the path that the Prince took! How cool is that?" The human hadn't heard about the Prince, and asked the monster kid if they would tell them more.

"You don't know about the Prince?! That's the story of our people, yo!" The monster kid started speaking. "Years ago, a human-" he was interrupted by the clanking of metal armor. "That's probably her! Oh my gosh, we gotta hide!" The monster kid dove into the grass, followed quickly by the human. They could make out Undyne, her head was visible above the grass. For the first time, the human noticed that she had an eyepatch. She looked around for a minute, then moved on.

"YOOOOOOO!" The monster kid exclaimed when she was gone. "I saw her! I actually saw her!"

They got back on the path, the human keeping a close eye out for Undyne. "Hey, what's that?" The monster kid asked, pointing to a statue on the side of the path. Rain began sprinkling from the sky, dousing the two travellers in water. "Ugh! There's some umbrellas up there, let's grab one!" The human raced forward, grabbing an umbrella. They were about to walk forward, when they looked back at the statue. The child wondered what the statue would look like with the umbrella...

They slowly walked back, nestling the umbrella in the crook of the statue's arm. They heard a tiny click, and a song began to play. It was a simple melody, short, but bittersweet.

"Whoa..." The monster kid listened to the statue. "...It's _His_ theme..."

The human heard the quick footsteps of metallic armor, and saw Undyne racing towards them through the rain. The music must've gotten her attention.

The human turned and ran, leaving the monster kid behind.

"YO!" The monster kid beamed. "THIS IS SOOO AWESOME!"

 **Thirty Minutes Later...**

The human had hid nearly everywhere, but Undyne had managed to track them down each time. They closed their eyes as they waited for the inevitable spear through the heart, but instead, they heard the sharp sound of metal scraping against metal.

They looked up to see Undyne's spear being held back by another spear. "You!" She roared, looking at the figure holding the spear. "Why are you out here, punk?!"

Lightning flashed, revealing the newcomer to be the Sentinel. The scar on his face was glistening in the light of the lightning.

"Run, human!" The Sentinel shouted over the rain. He kicked Undyne back, spinning his spear, and the two warriors engaged in a fierce duel. The human wanted to help the Sentinel, but Undyne would surely kill them. They ran towards the mountain, the sound of battle fading in the distance.

The child had found a metal door leading into the volcano, and they went inside, collapsing from exhaustion. Their eyes opened, seeing a pair of legs in front of them.

"YO!" It was the monster kid. "It must be SOO cool to have Undyne chasing you!"

The human rolled their eyes and got up, slowly walking into the mountain. "Hey, did you see that other guy? He looked pretty tough. Do you know him?" The human told the monster kid that he was a friend of theirs. "Well, I'm sorry to tell you, but Undyne's going to beat him up! She NEVER loses!"

They walked a little further, the temperature slowly rising as they advanced. A large _CLANK_ sounded behind them, and the human heard Undyne screaming. "This ain't over, punk!" The human groaned, they were too tired to run anymore. They just kept walking into the mountain. After a few minutes, they looked behind them, expecting to see Undyne charging at full speed, but instead, she was... panting...

"So... hot..." she groaned, wiping her brow. Undyne took a few steps further, then collapsed from exhaustion.

The human felt bad for Undyne, there wasn't anything they could really do to help. They walked a little while longer, seeing a water dispenser ahead.

They quickly went to it, eager to replenish themselves, but then looked back at Undyne.

The child slowly walked back, pouring some water in her mouth, then went back to the dispenser to get some water for themselves.

 _I hope the Sentinel's okay..._ They thought. They looked back to see if he had followed, but he wasn't anywhere to be seen. In fact, neither was Undyne. She had left when the human's back was turned.

The human frowned, going back out of the mountain to look for them.


	12. The East End- Undyne's House

The human looked up at the odd, fish-shaped house. It hadn't taken them long to find it (what with all the Undyne fans), but the human was worried about what would happen when they tried talking to Undyne.

They knocked at the door, then ducked when they heard a loud, "NNGGAAAHH!" The door was kicked off its hinges, and flew over the human's head.

"I told you kids, I don't give out autographs-" Undyne started to say, before realizing that it was the child. "Wh-what- get out!" Undyne shouted.

 _But I am out..._ the human decided to keep that thought to themselves.

Undyne grumbled and walked back into her house. The human followed, expecting to see war trophies decorating the walls...

Instead, they found that the house was mainly a kitchen. There were racks filled with every spice one could wish for, and cupboards full of the best cooking equipment. The child heard spaghetti being slurped, and looked at the kitchen table to see-

"HUMAN? IS THAT REALLY YOU?!" Papyrus jumped up and hugged the human. "NYE-HEH-HEH! I'M SO GLAD UNDYNE DIDN'T FRAME YOUR HEAD ON HER WALL!" The human's lungs were being crushed, but they were too nice to even ask to be put down.

Papyrus finally set the human down. "WELL, THIS CALLS FOR A CELEBRATION! HOW ABOUT WE-" Papyrus suddenly shut up, realizing that Undyne was giving the two a death glare.

"UM... UNDYNE?..." Papyrus asked nervously.

"You knew..." she said, her breathing getting heavier. "...you KNEW the human this whole time, AND YOU DIDN'T BOTHER TO TELL ME IT'S WHEREABOUTS?!" Undyne hurled a spear at Papyrus, and it missed his head by an inch. "WELL, Y-Y-YOU SEE UNDYNE..." Papyrus stuttered. "...THIS HUMAN IS A VERY GOOD FRIEND OF MINE, AND I WAS WONDERING IF MAYBE-"

"Maybe WHAT?!" The fishy guardian snapped.

"-MAYBE YOU WOULD WANT TO BE FRIENDS WITH THEM, TOO..."

Undyne stared at Papyrus like he was crazy, then threw her head back and laughed. "Papyrus...it's not my job to make friends... it's my JOB to kill or capture any humans!" She threw her hands up in the air. "Don't you know how close we are to finishing that barrier?"

Papyrus shrugged. "SEEMS STRONG ENOUGH TO ME-" Undyne slammed the table with her first, making it somersault three times, then land perfectly back on its legs.

"We need SEVEN SOULS, Papyrus. We only have SIX right now! If we get this kid's soul, then no human will EVER be able to come up here again!" Undyne turned around and went back to cooking.

Papyrus tried to think up of another reason for Undyne to spare the human. "PERHAPS ASGORE WILL MAKE A SPECIAL EXCEPTION-"

Undyne spun around, pointing at Papyrus. "Don't you DARE assume the king's will! He's like a father to me, you know that!" The child frowned at Undyne's words. From what the child had heard, Asgore didn't seem like the fatherly type...

"He used to train me... he knew how much I wanted to help our people, Papyrus." She shut her eyes. "And... The humans deserve it, too. After what they did to the Prince..."

 _Again with the Prince..._ The human pondered. _What happened to this 'Prince'?_

Then it hit the child. If this kingdom had a Prince... that meant that that Prince must have been the king's son. Something horrible must've happened to drive Asgore to murder humans...

"Anyways, I'm not going to kill the human now... I have the other prisoner to attend to..." _Other prisoner... The Sentinel?!_ The human was happy to hear that their friend was alright.

"What are you smiling at?" Undyne said, turning around to her cooking pan. While she had been talking, it had caught on fire.

"NGAH! FIRE!" Undyne screamed, rummaging around for water. Papyrus screamed and jumped out the window, yelling for the fire department. Undyne threw a bucket of water on it, but it only grew. It must've been a grease fire...

"ARGH! COME ON!" Undyne looked around for anything else to help, but jumped when they saw the child going through their cabinet.

"Hey, get down from there, punk!" She snapped, watching as the human pulled out some baking soda. The child quickly threw it on the flame, making it die down.

Undyne stared at her burnt meal, then at the human. Then back to the burnt meal, then back at the human.

"Why?" She asked, crossing her arms. "Why do you keep saving me?" The human quickly responded that it was the right thing to do. Undyne sighed. "I'm not having an easy time figuring out what 'right' is..." she sat down in one of her chairs. "I mean... I know my orders are to kill you, but... you're just a kid." The human nodded, sitting next to Undyne.

"Well... I guess old Papyrus was right." She chuckled. "I guess we're 'friends' now..." The human smiled, grateful that they wouldn't have to worry about being speared from behind. "Hey, can I tell you something..." she said. "That... guy... that tried saving you? I didn't capture him." She looked down. "I was getting my butt kicked, actually. I've never met anyone who fights like this guy. Well... maybe Asgore... but, still, that guy was awesome!" She smiled, baring her sharp teeth. "I would've respected the guy if I wasn't trying to kill him at the time. But... he knocked me down, then had his spear at my eye. I thought I was a goner, but... he just stopped."

The child blinked. The Sentinel had given up?

"They said... 'Take me. I want you to take me to the castle prison.' Now, I have no idea why, but I obliged." She sighed. "He's there now... sitting in a guarded cell." Undyne continued. "This isn't the first time I've fought the guy, either. A few years back, Asgore sent me to the Ruins to see if his lost wife was there..." she paused, looking out the broken window. "...I got ambushed by that guy. He was saying that he was protecting his mom, which didn't make sense. We fought for a while, and all I managed to do was leave a scar on his face..."

So it was Undyne who had given the Sentinel his scar...

"...He beat me, chasing me to the end of the ruins, and then..." she pointed to her eyepatch. "...then he did _that._ At least I got to live..."

The human shivered a little. The Sentinel didn't seem that harmless anymore...

"Hey, kid." Undyne nudged the kid. "You should get going, you've got places to be, right?" She smiled.

The human told Undyne goodbye, and left the house. As they walked out, they heard a large siren going off. A small fire truck pulled up to the front door, and the driver leaped out.

"HELLO, HUMAN! IT IS I, VOLUNTEER FIREFIGHTER PAPYRUS! NOW, THIS RENTAL FIRE TRUCK MAY HAVE COST ME A LOT OF GOLD... BUT IT WILL ALL BE WORTH IT IF I CAN SAVE UNDYNE!" Papyrus looked over at the house, noticing that the fire was out.

"NYEEAAGGH! ALL THAT FOR NOTHING?!" Papyrus sighed and drove back to return the rented fire truck.


	13. The Mountain- Corridor

Apparently the human had been right about Mount Te Deum. It _was_ a volcano after all.

They had first guessed at it being a volcano upon seeing it. The top of the mountain was not normal, it seemed to cave inward. Their second clue had been the rise in temperature when they were being chased by Undyne. But now, seeing magma flow about the corridor, their suspicious were ultimately confirmed. A stream of magma lay in front of the child, with a few large stones creating a pathway.

The child hopped across the stones that lay on the magma, reaching the other side of the stream. They walked forward, entering into a small room. The room had motorized fans blowing, giving the air a refreshing breeze. There was a small office chair in the center, facing a huge panel. On this panel there were several computer screens, one labelled, 'Entrance Cam 1'. Another screen was labelled, 'MTT NETWORK', and was currently recording some robot hosting a game show. The final screen was labelled, 'Magma Chamber Stabilizer', and had been shut off.

As they human looked at these screens, they heard the doorknob turn, and quickly hid behind the chair. They heard shuffling, and saw a short, yellow lizard dressed in a lab coat. The monster checked the screen labelled 'MTT NETWORK', and sighed.

"Oh, dear. H-h-he's using audience members as b-b-buzzers..." The monster shuffled back to the door, and the child took this opportunity to try to go out through the way they came. They stepped forward and slipped on the shiny, metal floor.

A gasp was heard. "The h-h-human!" The yellow monster stuttered. "Just stay here, I-I-I promise that nothing will happen if you do..." she turned and ran out the door.

The child quietly stepped through the doorway the monster scientist had taken, and ran to the left. They could hear people cheering for something, although they didn't quite know what it was...

The child made it to a door, and quickly opened it. Their jaw dropped when they found themselves on a stage, with several dozen monsters staring at them in curiosity.

"OH MY GOOOOOOOOSH!" An overly dramatic voice rang out. The robot that the human had seen earlier rolled forward, stopping in front of the human.

"This, ladies and gentlemen... is the human child- yes, THE human child- that has been the subject of the 'MTT Talk Show'!" The audience clapped, some of them chanting, "MTT! MTT!"

"Thank you, thank you very much..." The robot bowed to the audience. "But however... this is NOT my critically-acclaimed talk show, it is my critically-acclaimed DANCE COMPETITION SHOW!" The monsters cheered again, holding up signs and banners with pictures of the robot on them.

"Welcome, everyone... to Mettaton's 'Dance or Die' show!" Yet another applause went up from the audience.

 _They're not really focusing on me, maybe I can just-_

"NOT SO FAST THERE, HUMAN!" Mettaton said, grabbing them by the shirt. "We can't have the show without the players, can we?..." Mettaton threw the child over his shoulder, and the child landed on a dance stage.

"Now it's time for some-" Mettaton leaped to the dance stage and struck a pose. "-ENTERTAINMENT!" The crowd went nuts, hollering and cheering for Mettaton.

 _That's all it takes to become famous? SERIOUSLY?!_ The human pushed past Mettaton, striking a pose of their own.

The crowd gasped, looking at each other in shock. After a few seconds, they began to clap in approval.

"You DARE..." Mettaton snapped, sounding offended beyond belief. "To strike a pose in front of ME?" The child looked defiantly at Mettaton, spinning and then posing again. The crowd gasped again, clapping more than before.

"Well then..." Mettaton said, pretending to roll up his sleeves. "It's time for your _Dance to the Death!_ " Mettaton began whirring, pieces of him rearranging, until he became a vaguely humanoid robot.

"Now you may have been born ready... but I was MADE ready!" Mettaton challenged. The human cracked their knuckles, asking Mettaton to bring it on.


	14. The Mountain- MTT Stage

The stage lit up, and a disco ball emerged from the ceiling. Panels along the wall opened up, and Mettaton flipped his hair like an arrogant pop star.

"Now, darling... it's time for a show to make all others look SO DRAB!" Mettaton started dancing, using as many moves as he could to impress the audience. The human watched as the panels began to shoot out bombs, racing towards the human. They ducked and rolled to avoid them, and heard a, "BOO!" come up from the audience.

The child looked to their left, seeing a ratings graph. It had gone down since the human hadn't been dancing.

"Oh, my!" Mettaton posed as if he was about to faint. "Do you consider THOSE moves? I wouldn't be surprised if the ratings killed you before I did!" Mettaton danced around the floor again, and more bombs shot out of the panels. This time, the human spun and flipped to avoid them, trying their best to look like they were dancing and not just trying not to die.

The audience cheered, sending the ratings up.

 _Maybe they'll want me to live if the ratings are high enough..._ the human looked over at Mettaton. _He's going to have to do whatever his fans tell him if he wants to stay famous..._

Mettaton gestured to the audience. "Do you think my absolute STARDOM ends here? No... I'll take your soul, using its power to become even more INSPIRING than ever!" Mettaton spun around the stage. "Then... monsters AND humans will look up to me as the star of the century!"

Mettaton swept his legs around, knocking the human off their feet. The audience clapped, sending the approvals up for the violence.

 _Well that's rude..._ The child stuck their tongue out at the audience, which promptly responded by cheering for Mettaton to destroy the human.

"Oh, believe me, darlings..." Mettaton posed dramatically. "This human is going DOWN!" Small Mettatons raced onto the stage, throwing bombs at the human. Most of them missed, but one clipped the human's shoulder, causing a small explosion that injured them.

The ratings went up again.

"Oh, give up, darling." The robot warned. "What chance do you have against a superstar like me?"

The human gritted their teeth, posing again despite being injured. The audience whooped and hollered, sending the ratings up again.

"Well, I suppose it's time to end this show..." Mettaton sighed, holding their hands out. "But at least you'll fall to someone with REAL heart!" Mettaton's core flew out, sending shocks at the human. The child couldn't dodge them all, and collapsed, the world around them going black...

* * *

The stage lit up, and a disco ball emerged from the ceiling. Panels along the wall opened up, and Mettaton flipped his hair like an arrogant pop star.

 _Wait, WHAT?!_ The human thought, standing in the exact spot they'd been when the dance had begun. _I thought I died! Didn't I die?_

The human thought back as Mettaton started dancing around the stage. They had died... why were they back? The human watched as the panels began to shoot out bombs, racing towards the human. They ducked and rolled to avoid them, and heard a, "BOO!"

They frowned. It was all the same. _Exactly_ the same. Like they were rereading the chapter of a story...

 _Well, I've got another chance, so let's not waste it..._ the child turned to the audience, saying that they wouldn't get hurt at all this time. They cheered for the human, but fell silent when Mettaton's legs sweeped around, kicking the human and breaking their neck.

* * *

The stage lit up, and a disco ball emerged from the ceiling. Panels along the wall opened up, and Mettaton flipped his hair like an arrogant pop star.

The child stared blankly. Why did they keep coming back? Not that they wanted to die... They thought back to Sans talking about determination. Maybe... maybe the human was just... too determined to die. Sounded crazy, but they had no other explanation.

The child dodged Mettaton's attacks. It was easier now that they knew what was coming, and they were even able to show off some moves while they did. The audience cheered loudly, sending the ratings soaring.

"Oh, my... determined, are we?" Mettaton sneered. "But darling, I have something that you could never dream of having..." Mettaton leaped upwards, posing while in the air, then made a perfect landing. "I... have... STYLE!"

The audience gave the loudest cheer the human had heard yet.

The human got ready, doing a backflip as Mettaton's legs sweeped around. They smoothly dodged all of the bombs, watching as the crowd grew louder and Mettaton grew nervous. The human slid between Mettaton's legs, did a backflip over his head, and landed in the most dramatic pose they could think of.

The audience went nuts, chanting for the human. The ratings rose the highest they'd been, and Mettaton sighed, having no choice other than to spare the human.

The human happily spared Mettaton, bowing to the audience.

"Don't get so cocky now..." Mettaton warned, striding off the stage. "That king won't ever give up until he has your soul, so it's either you go back home... or you kill the king, so you can live up here..."

The audience gasped, turning to the child. For once, the human didn't know what to do. They didn't want to leave this amazing place... but then again, they didn't want to kill the king. The child walked sadly out the door, heading towards an uncertain future in an uncertain place.


	15. The Mountain- Alphys's Lab

As the human's hopes faltered, they saw a metal sign on the rocky wall. The sign read, 'Lab of the Assistant Royal Scientist', and had a keypad next to it. The human had no idea what to type in, so they sighed and moved on.

"W-w-wait!" A voice called from behind the rock after the human had walked for a minute or so. There was the sound of buttons being pressed, and a large slab of the rock shifted outward, revealing a small laboratory behind it.

"I-I-I opened the door f-f-from the inside..." It was the yellow monster with the lab coat from before. "It's a pl-pl-pleasure to meet you, my name is Dr. Alphys th-th-the assistant Royal Scientist..."

The monster's stutters seemed to be out of anxiety, and her eyes seemed to gleam with fear. She was constantly looking both ways, as if to check for something dangerous.

The child nodded politely, walking into the small lab, and looked at the various scientific equipment. "I-I know this place doesn't seem like m-m-much, but I've been able to do an amazing amount of e-e-experiments here." Alphys stuttered, looking hesitantly back at the door. The human looked at Alphys, asking her what was wrong.

"N-n-nothing! Everything's p-p-perfectly okay!" She made an attempt at a smile, but her eyes retained their uneasiness. The human shrugged and continued looking around. Eventually, they came across a large machine in the corner of the room, labelled 'DT Extractor'.

"That's the d-d-determination extractor..." Alphys checked the empty doorway once again. "...I used it on an experiment a f-f-few years back..." the human asked what the experiment was. "O-oh. Well..."

"Me..." a raspy voice answered. "...It was ME!" The human turned, seeing their old buddy Flowey.

"Howdy, Alphys!" Flowey said, giving her a hideous smile. "How are you doing with keeping our little secret safe?" Alphys shuddered. "W-w-well-" "Well, what?!" Flowey hissed, slithering closer.

The human stood in front of Alphys, staring down Flowey. The little flower cackled. "Don't be an idiot... Alphys and I have made an arrangement, and you're not interfering..."

Alphys looked at Flowey. "Th-the prisoner... that Undyne captured..."

Flowey nodded. "The Sentinel. What about him?"

"W-w-well, he mentioned that he w-w-was given something b-by a talking f-f-flower-"

"WHAT?!" Flowey roared, sinking back into the ground, then popping back up at Alphys's feet. Small vines erupted from the ground, entangling her feet. "What did he say I gave him?"

Alphys looked terrified. "A-a picture-" The human was about to grab Flowey, but then looked at how fragile the wilted flower was. The child couldn't risk killing him, even if he was a despicable little fiend...

"Where is it?!" Flowey asked, the vines creeping up to her shoulders. "Where's the picture?"

"W-w-why are you a-asking me?" Alphys responded, struggling to get out of the vines. "Because of our little agreement..." Flowey smirked. "...I agree not to reveal that you brought a soulless object to life without clearance from your boss, and YOU agree to help me with what I ask..." Flowey sneered. "Cowards like you always give in... like that last Assistant Royal Scientist did..." Flowey's grin spread across his face. "...he was the only one who tried to stop me... the only one who knew that what I was doing was going to end poorly. But you know what?"

Alphys shook her head. "What a-a-are you talking about?" Flowey beamed. "That old bag of bones was too cowardly to make me turn around! Too lazy to keep me from going underground..."

 _Lazy bag of bones... Sans?_ The human thought.

"W-w-when did you ever meet S-S-Sans?" Alphys stuttered, horror filling her voice. "When? Why... when I was his 'Best Friend'..." Flowey laughed, the vines creeping around Alphys's neck. She cried out in fear, saying, "O-o-okay! He still has the picture! T-the Sentinel!"

Flowey beamed. "Very good... now it's going to stay with him."

The vines increased their grip, choking Alphys. "B-b-but you said-" "I said that I would keep you around as long as I needed help. And now that the 'Sentinel of the Ruins' is in the prison? My plan is in full effect."

The human couldn't take it. They raced at Flowey, struggling to pry the vines from Alphys's throat. Rather than make things better, the vines grabbed onto the human's hands, rendering them helpless.

"Soon, King Asgore will be dead..." Flowey grinned at the human. " ...and I'LL have the human souls, once and for all!" Flowey laughed as Alphys's face paled, her movements slowing. The human felt a cry of terror escape their throat.

 _"AAAAAGGGHH!"_

Flowey screeched in pain, his vines had been burned to ashes. Alphys and the human were freed, and Flowey looked behind himself at the doorway into the lab.

"Greetings, Flowey."

The Sentinel strode into the room, his right arm outstretched, flames dancing along his fingers. "Now, I suggest you leave this scientist and my human friend here, before I burn whatever's left of you to a crisp!"

Flowey sank into the ground, and Alphys sat up to see the Sentinel.

"Y-y-you saved us?" She asked, and he nodded. "I had no idea that you'd been making a deal with the devil. I would've come sooner had I known..." he helped them both up, looking at Alphys. "The throne room. How do I get there?"

Alphys looked down. "I-I-" The Sentinel sighed. "I suppose I can find my way." The human walked in front, asking the Sentinel about the picture Flowey had spoken of.

He reached into a pocket hanging out of his armor, pulled out a small picture, and handed it to the child.

The picture was a family photograph. Toriel was sitting in a reclining chair, holding two children. One of them was a human, whom was grinning and hugging the other child, this one a monster. A monster that resembled the Sentinel...

"So there you have it." The Sentinel said solemnly. "The basis of my suspicions about Asgore." He looked at Alphys. "He killed my sibling... he ruined my mother's life..."

Alphys squinted at the picture, then stared in shock at the Sentinel. "That's Toriel! She's your mother?" The Sentinel frowned. "How did you know... nevermind..." he turned around, heading out of the mountain.

"Th-th-then that means..." Alphys gasped. "Wait, come b-b-back!" Alphys chased after the Sentinel, calling him by a name the human had not heard before.

"Asriel, come back!"


	16. West End- Hat Shop

Having nowhere left to go inside the volcano, the child wandered outside to see the rest of Mount Te Deum. The volcano was strangely inactive, which probably contributed to the community that had formed around it.

Alongside the southern slopes of the volcano was a village, consisting of many different houses. They came in different shapes, different colors, different sizes, but one seemed to stand out from the rest...

It was a two-story house, with hats being displayed behind the windows. There was a sign on the door that read, 'Open for business!' The more that the human looked, the more that this looked like a small store.

"Hey, kid..." a hyper voice said. A short, doglike monster walked beside the child. "...have you heard the legend of the Queen?" The child shook their head. Another story of the royal family to discover, apparently.

"They say that the Queen took some armor of the royal guard to disguise herself, and fled the castle. I've heard that she took this path, because she didn't want to tread where her son had trodden..." The child thought back to what the Monster kid had told them, about the Prince taking the mountain path...

"...but as for me? I don't believe it." The monster lived. "After all, my parents told me that she was carrying a child when she left, I personally think that the Prince survived." The human asked what the Prince had gone through.

"Oh... I shouldn't talk about it." The monster sighed, turning around. "It'd only make you cry..." The hyper dog walked inside the hat store, then left a few minutes later with a sombrero.

The human decided to check out the store for themself, opening the door. _Ring-ding!_ A bell attached to the wall rang, and the human noticed a monster peeking around a corner.

"Welcome!" A sweet voice sounded. "How may I be of help to you?"

The store owner stepped out, smiling warmly at the child. The most noticeable thing about her was that she was of the same species as Toriel and the Sentinel. She was covered in soft, white fur, and wore a beautiful dress that looked like a sunset. Her hair was ash blonde, and went halfway down her back. The most striking thing about her were her eyes... eyes that seemed to sparkle with care and comfort. She tilted her head at the human. "Well, aren't you going to pick something out, silly?"

The child looked around the store. There were hats everywhere, on tables, on shelves, walls, even covering the roof. The human gave a puzzled look at the roof hats in particular.

"Oh... I thought it would be nice to give customers a perspective of what my hats would look like from a bird's-eye view." She explained, looking up. "That's what you would see if you were looking down on them... it sounds silly now, but... it's done, and I don't have a ladder anymore to get them down." She smiled again and walked to a counter.

 _Ring-ding!_

Heavy footsteps came from the door, and the human saw the head of a new customer. Goatlike, with two horns on his head, and a scar that ran from the bottom of his chin to the top of his snout-

 _The Sentinel. He must be hiding out here._

"May I help you?" The store owner asked the Sentinel. The quiet guard looked up. "No, I think I'm-" he took one look at her, and his eyes almost popped. He looked away as his jaw dropped in amazement, and he hurriedly walked to the other side of the room.

The human cracked up. The Sentinel was so awkward.

"Is... everything alright?" The store owner looked over at the Sentinel and smiled. He nervously darted his eyes at her. "N-n-no..." "I'd be happy to help if something's wrong." She said. "I love my job, and it's my priority that your time here is well spent." The Sentinel gave a thumbs-up, trying not to look at her eyes.

She shrugged and walked over to her desk, humming a song that the human recognized as the one from the statue at the mountain pass.

The child walked over to the Sentinel, smirking. "W-what is it, human?" He asked, his face was redder than a lobster. "It's not like I've seen her before. Or think she has clever entrepreneurial ideas... or think that her eyes look like stars... or..." he shut up before he said something more embarrassing.

The human started dragging the Sentinel by the arm. "Human, what are you-" they paused once again when they saw they had been dragged to the desk of the store owner. "Heeeeehhh..." he mumbled.

The store owner flashed a grin. "Have you two found a product you'd like to buy?" The child shook its head, saying that the Sentinel would like to know her name.

The Sentinel gave a deathly nervous smile, waving hello to her.

"Oh..." she laughed. Upon hearing her laugh, the Sentinel's head seemed to sink further into his armor. "My name's Amabilia." She told the Sentinel. "Ama, if you'd prefer."

The Sentinel grinned like an idiot and nodded. The human kicked his shin, gesturing for him to say his name. He relaxed slightly. "That's quite a lovely name, Ama..." he said, making her smile and look at her feet. "My name is..." he paused. "...well... just call me the Sentinel."

The child remembered Alphys calling the Sentinel 'Asriel'. Was that his real name?

"Mysterious..." she grinned. "...how intriguing." He tried laughing to help the situation, but it came out as awkward and loud. "Thanks! I mean- I should be thanking you, you know, for having this store... do you have any sales? I'm not really looking for hats... hahaha..." his goofy-looking nervous smile returned.

The human decided to see if she knew anything about him, asking her if she'd ever heard of him. "Why, no. I don't think-" she clenched up, falling to the ground.

"Ama!" The Sentinel cried out, taking a knee and turning her face over.

Her sparkling eyes now glowed like eerie light bulbs, and she started speaking. "The time draws close... child of the king, the terror from the ruins... The armored guardian, he's here! Beware the fire from below, beware the monster's gaze! Beware the Malum-bringer..." The Sentinel furrowed his brow, picking her up. "Malum... that means 'doom' in Latin..."

Amabilia blinked her eyes, which returned back to normal. She unclenched her hands, looking up at the Sentinel. "Wh-what happened?" He frowned. "I don't know..." The Sentinel locked eyes with her, then realized that he was holding her...

 _Good job, Sentinel!_ The human grinned.

"Sorry! I... just..." he quickly sat her back down. "...I thought... thought you needed saving..." Ama smiled up at him. "I..." she looked at the ground to hide her blush. "...I don't mind."

The child's grin widened, and they elbowed the Sentinel.

"Hey, Ama..." his voice cracked at the end, and Ama laughed. "Why are you so nervous?" The Sentinel sighed and sat next to her. "Because... well... you. You're just... so..." he took a deep breath. "...wonderful. Purely wonderful."

She grinned again. "That's a lot to say..."

He smiled at her, looking really confident about talking for the first time in... well... for the first time that the human had seen him.

"Well, I've got a lot to say about you." He stood up, holding out his hand. "I know a decent place to eat at the West End, would you like to go with me?" She nodded quickly, taking his hand and pulling herself up.

The Sentinel walked her out the door, telling her stories of his adventures, and telling Ama how incredible she seemed to him.


	17. West End- Castle Gate

Still laughing from the awkward interaction that had just taken place, the child walked down the path to the castle. It was risky, snooping around the place where the king that wanted them dead was, but the human couldn't think of anything better to do.

As they made it to the gate, they grinned in joy. It was almost everyone the human had met, Papyrus, Sans, Undyne, Alphys, and Ama.

The child looked at Ama, curious as to how she had gotten here before the human if she had been travelling in the opposite direction...

"HUMAN!" Papyrus said, "THE TIME HAS COME FOR YOU TO MAKE A DECISION!" Undyne nodded in agreement. "Yeah, punk! You've got some thinking to do!" Undyne gave a thumbs-up.

"W-we need to tell you w-w-why the king needs your s-s-soul..." Alphys stated. "I-it is needed t-t-to complete the barrier."

The human asked their friends why there was a barrier.

"LONG AGO... THERE WERE TWO RACES THAT RULED OVER THE EARTH..." Papyrus said. "...HUMANS, AND MONSTERS."

"They ruled the surface in relative peace for centuries." Ama added. "But one day, the humans made a mistake."

Sans continued for her. "The king declared war, and united the monsters all around the world." He looked back at the castle behind him. "United, and hungry for vengeance, the monsters were a force to be reckoned with. The war raged across lands far from here... ending with most of the monsters slain, but the humans had been defeated."

"Yeah! Go us!" Undyne pumped her fist. "Anyways, we forced the humans underground, through the only staircase that had been created for access to the underground."

"AND SINCE WE COULDN'T HAVE ANY HUMANS COMING BACK ABOVE GROUND, THE KING DECLARED THAT HE WOULD MAKE A BARRIER TO SEAL THEM UNDERGROUND FOREVER. A BARRIER OF THAT POWER COULD ONLY BE MADE BY SEVEN HUMAN SOULS..."

"The king only had fragments left from one soul, so he used its determination to create a barrier, strong enough to keep most humans out, but also weak enough to let determined humans through." Sans looked at the child. "You don't know what that poor guy lost... he's desperate to keep humanity from doing anything to his people ever again."

Ama nodded. "They slaughtered most of our kind before we won. The monsters on this island are all that are left."

"So, because of all this, you pretty much have three options." Sans spoke out. "One: Go back underground. Which none of us want, since we don't want you to leave. Two: Try to hide from Asgore, which is nearly impossible. We don't want you living life as a fugitive. And three: Fight Asgore, and either work something out, or kill him to save yourself. We don't want that either, we care about our king, and we can tell that you're not the kind of kid who wants to kill." Sans shrugged. "What's going to be your decision?" The human looked at all their friends, wishing that their was another way...

They sadly hugged each of the friends they had made, lastly being their newest friend, Ama. They asked her how she was able to get here if she had been at the West End with the Sentinel.

"Oh... I guess you could say..." she whispered. "...I took a shortcut." She smiled at the human. "I owe you a huge thanks, the Sentinel was... so nice, and so sweet..." she laughed. "...he's not the best at social interaction, but that's not an issue. I think that he really wants us both to be happy." The child smiled back, asking Ama where the Sentinel was.

She shrugged. "No idea... he just told me that he was on his way to do something he'd been meaning to do for a long time."

Alphys looked over at Ama and the child. "He's a very m-m-mysterious monster... he let Undyne take h-him to prison without real c-c-cause, and he keeps mentioning that he has to d-d-do something." She looked down. "P-p-poor Asriel,I still c-c-can't believe h-he's alive."

The human frowned, wondering what she meant about not believing that he was alive. They slowly opened the gate, and entered the castle.


	18. The Castle- Main Hall

The huge, golden doors to the castle opened, revealing a huge hall. The hall had stainglass windows along the wall, each one depicting a different event in the history of monsters. The human looked at all the windows, they had been so well made..

They heard a "*Ribbit*" and looked down to see a Froggit. "Child from the world below... turn your ear and hear our tale..." another Froggit hopped closer, then spoke as well. "The story that makes both humans and monsters wail... hear now the Prince's tale."

The two froggits hopped away, leaving the child confused and and interested. They continued looking at the stainglass windows, pausing when they saw one of a human leaving the West End of the island.

"Long ago, a human decided to leave the castle where their kind had lived... they walked for miles, eventually growing weary from their journey." The human turned to see two sandflees continuing the story. "They walked up the path to the castle, collapsing in weariness at the gate. The human, seemingly alone, called out for help." The sandflees rolled away, and the human looked to the next window, in which the human was being helped to their feet.

A froggit and a beachdrake walked beside the human. "ASRIEL, the Prince of the underground, heard the human's call. They came to the human's aid, taking them inside the castle to his parents."

The child looked at the next window, and their jaw dropped. It was the picture that the Sentinel carried, except in stainglass. Toriel was holding Asriel and the human, and the two children were hugging each other. "Over time, the Prince and the human became like siblings. It seemed that the small dissents between monsters and humans were finally in the past."

This changed everything about the Sentinel. He was the Prince of the underground! That meant... that also meant that Toriel was the queen! They thought on this, wondering why the Sentinel had said that mentioning Asgore always made Toriel upset...

"Then, one day, the human became deathly ill." Another monster said sadly. "Their last wish was to be laid in the bed of golden flowers that was in the castle of the humans... but there was nothing we could do."

"Monsters and humans were already on tense terms, and war seemed to be on the horizon. But... there was one monster whom did not fear humans."

Another monster stepped out, pointing to a stainglass window of Asriel carrying the human's body. "Asriel, distressed by the death of their friend, absorbed the human's soul. They turned into a being with amazing power, and carried the human's body across the island... back to the castle of the humans."

The next window was red, depicting an army of humans charging Asriel. "The humans saw Asriel carrying the body and cried in terror. They thought that Asriel had murdered the child."

"The humans fought Asriel with all their might. He was hit from all around, every human taking a turn at injuring him. Asriel had the power to wipe out the humans, and be on his way."

The child looked at the stainglass window sadly. They knew that feeling, having threats on every side, and knowing that they could probably do something about it.

"But... Asriel did not fight back. They left the human in the flower bed, and took the mountain path back to the castle."

 _So that's why the monster kid was so interested in that path..._ The human thought.

"Entering the throne room, Asriel collapsed. With his death, his essence dispersed around the room, leaving the king and queen with nothing left of their beloved son."

 _Wait... he's DEAD?_ The child looked at the window depicting Asriel's death in confusion. _But... but the_ Sentinel _is Asriel..._

The human's mind flashed back to the monster on the mountain slope claiming that the Prince had survived, and the queen had carried a child away from the castle.

"Asgore, king of the monsters, sent word to his subjects across the world, calling on them to unite against humanity in war. The monsters, though taking heavy losses, were able to defeat the humans, driving them underground and laying waste to their castle, which is now known as the ruins."

The child looked forward, realizing that they were almost at the end of the hall.

"Now, as monsters dwell in peace on the island of Te Deum, King Asgore promises to create a barrier powerful enough to keep any human from leaving the underground. It won't be long now..."

Three monsters began speaking about Asgore simultaneously.

"King Asgore will stop the humans."

"King Asgore will protect our land."

"King Asgore will keep us free from pain."

The child was now less determined than ever, knowing that the Sentinel was horribly wrong about Asgore, knowing that a king who'd suffered so much would stop at nothing to keep his word, and that a fight was unavoidable.

"Why are you crying?" A monster asked as the child wiped their eyes. "Don't be sad." Another one said. "Why are you sad?"

The child came to the end of the hall, faced with a small froggit.

"You're going to be saved."


	19. The Castle- The End

Still shaken by the story that had just been told, the child slowly opened the two doors that stood before them. The looked to an inscription on the wall, which read, 'Throne Room'.

The throne room had the area of a house, stretching out over a vast garden of golden flowers. Torches and weaponry lined the walls, which stretched upwards to a curved ceiling. There was a large throne near the back of the room, and someone was seated in it.

"Dum dum dee dum dee dum..." a deep voice sang. "...just a moment, friend! I have almost finished my tea..."

The large figure sipped a small teacup, then set it down. "Now..." he said, stepping down from his throne and walking to the child. "...what seems to be the matter-"

They froze upon realizing that it was a human. The king sighed. "So... The time has come, hasn't it?" Asgore walked over to the wall, looking at all the decorations upon it. His purple robe shifted with his shoulders as he looked to the side.

"I hope you're one of those fellows who asks me if the hat-store lady is related to me." He said. "I assure you, we're of the same race of monster, but there's no relation there whatsoever." The child realized that they probably should've thought of that before setting Ama up with the Sentinel, since there was a chance that the Sentinel was Asriel. Good thing they weren't related.

"You know... it's a nice day out..." Asgore suggested, stroking his beard. "...perhaps you should go out and play a good game of catch with your friends..." The child did nothing.

He turned to the human and smiled. "...ah... not one for catch, are we?" He walked back over to his throne. "That's fine... there are plenty of other things you could be doing, why not try to go do something that makes you happy?"

The human got the feeling that Asgore was trying to delay the inevitable. They really didn't want to fight this poor guy...

Asgore looked down at the flowers. "So be it. When you are ready, go into the next room." He slowly walked towards a door by his throne, then turned around. "Do take all the time that you need, I wouldn't mind it one bit." He disappeared into the next room, leaving the child.

The human sat down to ponder on what to do. Asgore didn't seem evil at all... something told the human that there was a possibility he was harmless. They looked down at the flowers, remembering that this was the place Prince Asriel had died. _If he's even dead..._

The child reasoned that Asgore could be talked to, then got up and walked to where he had gone. "Back so soon?" Asgore asked, smiling at the child. The child smiled a little and shrugged their shoulders. Asgore sighed and turned around. The room they had entered must have been the back of the castle, since the only thing that could be seen through the windows was the coast of the island."This is what I am here to protect, human..." The child frowned, wondering what Asgore had meant by 'protect'. Then they noticed that, in the corner of the room, was a small boat, complete with oars and a sail.

"This is the last boat left on the surface..." Asgore remarked, running his hand along its wooden surface. "We monsters used to live all around the world... and one day, if there are enough of us, we may need this in order to do so again. There is no life of any kind out there... but if one human escaped, then so could more." He looked out the window. "They would repopulate... raise a new army... and then surely my kind would be doomed."

That was it! The human could leave the island by boat, and live somewhere else on the surface!

"Ready?" Asgore asked. Seven containers rose behind him, all but one of them holding a glowing heart.

 _Souls..._ The child thought.

"Child..." Asgore said, his head bowed. "...forgive me." His right arm shot out of his robe, clutching a massive trident.

 _Uh oh..._

Asgore stabbed at the human, instantly killing it.

* * *

The human woke up back in the throne room, their eyes wide in terror at how quickly Asgore had killed them. They slowly got up, walking into the next room.

"Back so soon?" Asgore smiled at the human. The human didn't respond, and Asgore sighed. "I suppose we should get it over with..." he said, readying his trident again and stabbing at the human.

The human rolled away, narrowly avoiding the trident. They looked up to see dozens of fireballs racing towards them, and ducked. The human looked at Asgore, saying that there could be another way to settle this.

Asgore solemnly shook his head, striking again with his trident.

The child dodged again, telling Asgore that they didn't want to fight him. The king paused for a moment, then shook his head and attacked again. Fire encircled the human, and they fell down to avoid it.

Raising his hands, Asgore sent more fire at the child, who managed to duck most of it, but got hit by one in the shoulder. The child shouted, and rolled on the ground until it had been put out.

Asgore stopped again when he heard the child cry in pain, as if remembering something. The human begged Asgore to let them spare him.

Asgore replied by swiping his trident, flinging the human against the wall. The child knew that this would just keep happening. Asgore would kill them over and over... and the human couldn't do anything about it.

The child pleaded with Asgore to stop and think if there was any other way. Asgore threw more fire at the human, burning their leg.

The human was powerless now. They cried again in pain, unable to stop the fire from consuming them. They weeped for help, knowing how stupid it was.

Asgore slowly approached the dying human, raising his trident to deal the final blow.

 _SWOOSH!-_ _ **CRUNCH!**_

Asgore drew in a breath of pain, and the child looked up at him. An ornate spear had been stabbed through his back, crunched through his armor, and was now protruding out of his chest.

Asgore looked at the child, his eyes seeming to say, _I'm so sorry..._ and he vaporized into dust.

The child looked at where Asgore had been standing, seeing someone in the dark. It was-

"Human..." The Sentinel choked, looking down at Asgore's dust. "...leave this place. It is not safe for you." He lowered his spear, falling to his knees. He continued staring at the dust, as if he'd just finished the most important task of his life. "Human..."

The child got up. The fire that had been burning them was gone, and they slowly pulled out some monster candy to heal themself. They looked at the Sentinel, asking him if he knew who he truly was. "I don't know what I am now..." The warrior replied. The human reached out, saying, "Asriel..."

The Sentinel's head snapped up. "What?"

A hideous laughter echoed through the castle, and the human looked behind themself to see none other than Flowey the flower.

"You IDIOTS!" He sneered, vines entangling the containers with the human souls inside them. "This is _MY_ world now..." Flowey turned to the Sentinel. "How did it feel, making dear old daddy turn to dust?!"

The Sentinel's jaw dropped. "You're saying he was my-"

"That's right..." Flowey giggled. "...looks like you're getting the big promotion! From Prince of the underground... to KING of the underground." Flowey shrugged. "At least until I'm done with it..."

"You're lying..." The Sentinel said, looking down in despair at the dust surrounding him. "Oh, but I'm not. After all... you have to have a dad, right? Did you ever think about how similar to you he looked? How the two of you are warriors out for vengeance..." Flowey held in a laugh. "...like father, like son..."

He cackled as the Sentinel got up and charged him. Flowey began to glow, absorbing the power of the souls, and suddenly-


	20. Flowey- My Island

_Darkness. Absolute darkness everywhere. Dust floating through the air, and the loud howl of a distant wind..._

The human could barely register these when they came to. The dust in the wind brushed up against their skin, moving onward to who knows where. The human couldn't see two feet in front of them.

The child felt around, hoping that something would show itself eventually. But the only thing they could feel was the ground, cold and littered with more dust.

 _What's with all the dust?_ The human wondered.

Suddenly, something began glittering in front of them. It was some sort of light...

Determined to end this chapter of their story, the human trudged ahead, feebly grasping at the light.

 _CCRRRR-AAAAACK!_

It felt as if the very air before the child exploded. They flew backwards, sliding on the ground a few feet, then looked for the light. But, in its place, was a huge, static image of Flowey.

"Howdy!" The evil flower greeted the human. "It's me, Flowey! Flowey the Flower!" Flowey's face twitched, turning into static for a second, then reorganized itself.

"Boy, do I owe you my thanks! Without you, I NEVER could've gotten that fool to kill the King!" Flowey grinned darkly. "But now, thanks to _you..."_ His face contorted into a beastlike visage, drooling from his fangs. "...I'VE got the human souls!"

Flowey's face returned to normal, smiling at the human. "You have NO idea... how POWERFUL I feel... the souls..." he giggled in joy. "...I can feel them squirming to get away. But with every second they waste struggling... they give me MORE power!"

The looked around for anyone to help them, there had to be someone else here...

"Aw... are you looking for your friends? Let me assure you, they're all around you, buddy!" More dust blew through their hair. Remembering Asgore turning to dust, they made a grim guess as to what all the dust really was.

"Aw, you're feeling left out, right?" Flowey grinned. "Don't you want to join all your friends in the wind?" Flowey laughed. "Toriel... Papyrus... Sans... Undyne... Alphys..." Flowey said, his face switching to the face of each monster's name he spoke.

"Well, buddy... it's time for your story to end." Flowey hissed, his face returning to normal. Or as 'normal' as his face could be. "It's our last chapter, and BOY is it going to be a good one..."

The human stood up, looking at the demonic flower in the eyes.

"What? You REALLY think that you can beat me?" Flowey laughed again, the entire world around the human turning to static.

"Hee hee hee... what an idiot..."

The static darkened as Flowey's face disappeared. Six human souls appeared before the human, arranging themselves in a pattern, and faded into the darkness. Flowey's laughter echoed around the human, growing louder as something began to lower itself from above the child.

The thing was barely visible, but what the child could see didn't make any sense. Vines made up most of this monster, swirling around the center in a flower-like pattern. The center... it looked like a television... The television turned on, revealing Flowey's face. The six souls appeared within the vines, and Flowey laughed horrendously.

Pellets flew at the child, from every angle, every direction. They moved around, dodging and ducking the attacks. Flowey's vines slashed at the human, ripping it to shreds.

"Hahaha! Did you think that this was going to be over... after killing you once? No, no... this chapter's going to go on for a long... LONG time..."

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

* * *

The human awoke again, the monstrous Flowey looming above them. Flowey quickly peppered the child with pellets, draining away their health. The child hung on as long as they could, then blacked out.

* * *

They awoke again, and again, and again... the same battle with the same start and ending. The human would survive for a little while, then would be torn apart by Flowey. The fight never ended, the two determined opponents locked in a battle for what felt like years.

* * *

Yet another determination resurrection. The child awoke, Flowey crawling down from the shadows. However, instead of the usual barrage of pellets, the human was greeted with a question.

"Why?" Flowey asked, his face twisted in frustration. "Why won't you just let me win?!" Flowey entangled the human in his vines. "All resistance is hopeless... why keep going?" Flowey smirked. "We've been fighting for so long... I can't even remember what it felt like to not be fighting." Flowey sighed. "Well, our time's up. I thought that tearing you apart for centuries would be a great way to pass my time, but now it's getting annoying." Flowey's face leaned in closer. "So I'll tell you what... why don't you cry out for help? Go on, see if someone's still out there, see if there's anything worth living for! Believe me, pal... THERE WAS NOTHING TO LIVE FOR IN THE FIRST PLACE!"

The human begged into the darkness, calling for someone to help them.

But nobody came.

They pleaded, asking if anyone was out there.

But nobody came.

"Keep trying, idiot!" Flowey laughed, obviously getting a kick out of the human's dilemma.

The child weeped, their tears joining the dust of their friends in the air, quietly asking for someone to help.

But nobody came.

"Aw... what a SHAME." Flowey smiled. "Looks like nobody's going to hear the end of this story!"

Pellets encircled the helpless child as Flowey's laughed resounded. They came closer... closer... closer...

But suddenly, they all vanished.

"Wh-what?" Flowey said in a confused tone. "Well... that's..." The souls inside Flowey began to glow, one by one untangling themselves from the vines.

"Th-the souls?" Flowey stuttered, as the souls drifted towards the human. They hovered around the human, pouring their determination into them until they were gone.

"No!" Flowey screamed, lashing with his vines. "I will not be defeated!"

The child knew what must be done. The swiped their hand at Flowey, dealing immense damage. Flowey recoiled and fought back, shooting pellets and slashing with his vines. The human continued fighting, ripping Flowey's vines off.

Flowey shouted in shock, unleashing all he had, but the human raced through it, delivering one last blow to Flowey's face, which promptly shattered into nothing.


	21. Neutral Route- Epilogue

_Ring... ring..._

"Heya. It's, uh... been quite a while, huh? Well, things have changed since you took off. No one saw you heading back underground, and the boat that used to be in the castle was gone, so we figured that you'd taken off to find land of your own. Can't say that I blame ya'. Anyway-"

"SANS! WHY ARE YOU TALKING TO THAT PHONE? DON'T YOU KNOW THAT THEY ARE INANIMATE OBJECTS?"

"It's the human, Papyrus. I'm just checking in on them.

"OH. MAY I TALK TO THE HUMAN?"

"Knock yourself out, bro."

"THANKS, BROTHER! *AHEM* HELLO, HUMAN! THE ISLAND HAS UNDERGONE SOME SERIOUS CHANGE! FOR ONE, BEACH HOURS HAVE BEEN EXTENDED TO 5 TO 8, AND THE SANDBAR HAS BEGUN SERVING TACOS."

"Why don't you tell them about your new job, Papyrus?"

"OH. WELL-"

"NGAH! Who're you talking to, punks?!"

"IT'S OUR HUMAN FRIEND, UNDYNE! WE HAVEN'T TALKED TO THEM IN SO LONG!"

"Well, don't just stand there! Hand it over!"

"BUT I-"

"Give. Me. The- UGH! There. What's up, punk? This place has gotten more awesome than ever! The Royal Guard's working hours have been extended, and they're upgrading our weaponry! Speaking of Royal Guard, we have a brand new member-"

"THAT'S ME! FORMER LIFEGUARD PAPYRUS!"

"Yeah! Papyrus, can you go do... something else for a second?"

"OF COURSE, FELLOW GUARD MEMBER! NYE-HEH-HEH!"

"To be honest, he's too new to do any serious work, so we have him guard a broom closet in the castle. Speaking of the castle, you and Asgore-"

"You okay Undyne?"

"Yeah, Sans. I'm good. I just miss the guy... I think everyone does. We have no idea what killed him, and the Sentinel told us that it wasn't you- OH! I almost forgot- Ama and him are still together. They're doing pretty well, but I don't get why that dude hasn't gotten a ring on her finger yet...

"HE WANTS TO MAKE SURE THAT IT'S THE RIGHT DECISION, UNDYNE! THAT, AND HE'S EXTREMELY UNCOMFORTABLE WITH SOCIAL INTERACTION, AND HE NEVER GETS TIME WITH HER ALONE!"

"I guess... Sorry we haven't talked, it's just that the queen has us pretty busy... she returned from the ruins after Asgore disappeared, and now she's having Alphys and her boss work on something new."

"YOU NEVER MET ALPHYS'S BOSS, DID YOU? HIS NAME IS-"

"Shut up, Papyrus! The phone's almost dead!"

"OH. WELL IN THAT CASE, FAREWELL, HUMAN! MAY YOUR LIFE BE FILLED WITH JOY!"

"See you later, punk!"

"Heya... if you ever feel like coming back... don't hesitate. There's... something we should probably talk about. Anyway, seeya."

The child closed their phone after Sans hung up. They sighed, looking at the wreckage of their boat. A storm had shipwrecked them on the coast of a mysterious, larger island... there was a sign that was on its abandoned beach that read, 'Florida'.

"Howdy!"

The child jumped when they heard Flowey, asking him how he was still alive.

"Did you really think that you had killed me? Hee hee hee... anyway, I'm not here to talk about that. I'm here to talk about endings."

Flowey smiled at the child. "I'll bet that you've figured out that your determination allows you to restart a chapter of your life if you die during it. That power... it's still there." Flowey looked out over the ocean.

"To be honest, I don't think any of us got the ending we wanted... especially me. So... I'm willing to tell you how to get a _better_ ending." Flowey turned back to the human. "You'll have to start an old chapter over again... and in the meantime, why don't you go talk to that lifeguard's piece-of-trash brother?" Flowey giggled. "Boy, does that guy have a LOT of stuff on his conscience. Maybe some of it could help you out." The flower laughed. "See you soon, buddy!"

Once Flowey left, the human pondered on what to do. They weren't sure about all of this... what consequences would there be to going through with Flowey's plan? On the other hand... there was nothing here for the child, so what did they have to lose?

The child continued thinking... thoughts and decisions swirling around like the dust in the air...


	22. Pacifist Route- Castle Gate

It had worked. It had _really_ worked!

The child looked around in joy, the island of Te Deum surrounding them once again. It had been so long... too long. But now it was all back...

"HUMAN! THE TIME HAS COME FOR YOU TO MAKE A DECISION!" Someone shouted from behind them. The child turned and saw their friends. "Yeah, punk! You've got some thinking to do!"

The child grinned, seeing their old friends walk up behind them. They laughed and hugged Papyrus in joy.

"OH... WELL... THIS IS UNEXPECTED, BUT APPRECIATED, HUMAN! I MISSED YOU TOO!"

The child continued hugging their friends, hugging Sans last. "Heya, kid. It's nice to see you too." The child looked up at Sans, giving him a knowing look. Sans kept his grin, but there was hesitation in his eyes. "Everything alright?"

The child asked Sans if there was anything he wanted to tell the child.

"Oh..." Sans's eyes went dark. "Hey... you guys head on back to your homes, okay?" Everyone frowned at him. "But Sans..." Ama said, shaking her head in confusion. "You said that you'd explain how I got here-" "And I will." Sans said, looking at the human. "I'll explain it to the kid."

Once everyone had left, Sans opened the gate to the castle, prompting the child to ask him what he was doing. "Hmm? Oh, we're going to take a shortcut to the lab. There's a lot of stuff you haven't seen there." The child told Sans that they had been to Alphys's lab, and they knew what was inside of it. "No, no, not Alphys's lab... the _real_ lab." Sans walked the human towards the castle. "The lab that her boss works at..."

When Sans opened the door to the castle's main hall, it opened to a large lab, with wires lining the walls and ceilings. The child walked inside, looking at the equipment, which seemed more complex than anything that Alphys had. A tall man was standing over a table in the back, mixing different chemicals together. He was mumbling to himself, but the human couldn't understand a single word he said.

"Heya." Sans said to the man, making the scientist turn around. The scientist sighed, picking up some device and attaching it to the side of his throat. He spoke again, and the machine translated his speech so that they could understand him.

"Sans... you've been doing well." The scientist said. "You too, boss." Sans winked, looking at the child. "This is my old boss, Dr. Gaster-"

"Dr. _W. D._ Gaster." Gaster interrupted. "So, this is the human that Alphys told me about?"

"It sure is." Sans nodded. "What's even more is I'm pretty sure they're the anomaly-" " _THE ANOMALY?!"_ Gaster gasped. "Sans, why haven't you destroyed it yet?" The human looked at Sans in fear.

"Relax, boss." Sans winked. "They're harmless."

Gaster shook his hands in exasperation. "Do you not remember the prophecy-" "Of course I remember it, boss." Sans said. "I remember how you got it, too."

Gaster stepped back, giving a hesitant look.

"That's right... I was able to withstand the alterations, but _she..._ well, let's say it's a good thing that dorky Sentinel guy fell for her. By the way, do you think that guy might be the Prince-" "Enough with your conspiracy theories, Sans!" Gaster shouted, going back to his work.

Sans chuckled and looked at the human. "Don't worry... you'll understand what we're talking about soon."

Sans led the child to the next room, which was extremely hot. The child wiped the sweat from their brow, then noticed that Sans was sweating too. _How can a skeleton sweat-_

"Here it is!" Sans said, motioning to the center of the room. It was a huge tube made of thick glass, filled with magma. Six smaller tubes extended from the central one, and attached it to six machines around the room.

"This is the magma chamber stabilizer." Sans waved his hand around the room. "This thing keeps the magma from becoming unstable, which would lead to an eruption." He pointed to one of the machines. "These machines channel the magma back underground, keeping it from building pressure and erupting." Sans looked at the child. "Not only that, but it absorbs some of the magma's energy, turning it into usable power. Most places on the island are powered through these machines. Including-" he opened another door, which revealed yet another lab. "-The core."

The core wasn't as much a lab as it was a power station. Several bridges extended from doors on the walls, and all led to a huge compartment in the middle. The bridges all extended fifty feet above the metal floor at the bottom. A fall from one of them would likely be fatal.

"The Core..." Sans continued. "...is Dr. Gaster's most groundbreaking creation yet. With proper use, it allows someone to travel through timelines..." The child's jaw dropped. "Yeah, you heard me. All those times you've come back after dying... all those times you feel like you're going through pages in a book... this conversation we're having right now... all of them are parts of separate timelines." Sans looked back at the core. "I used to work here... I was Dr. Gaster's first assistant. I was the first to use the core... but my soul wasn't strong enough to view the timelines. Instead, it resisted the numerous alterations. Those alterations... The small choices that people make to change timelines... they can only be viewed by someone with enough determination."

Sans sighed and looked down. "Naturally, Gaster turned to a specific race of monsters known as boss monsters. Their souls are the only monster souls that can survive after death, making them the most powerful. King Asgore is one. But..." Sans shrugged. "...seeing as Gaster wasn't one to risk the future of the royal line, he turned to an unrelated boss monster that lived on the mountainside."

 _Ama..._ The human thought.

"Her soul was powerful enough to view the alterations, but... there was a side effect. She was not strong enough to remember it on her own, but in small, epileptic intervals. She has no memory of being part of this experiment, even though it was through her that Gaster obtained the prophecy of Malum."

Sans looked at the human, and began to recite the prophecy. "One from the ruins shall emerge... bearing terrible power... and shall bring an end to Te Deum, they shall bring doom to us all." Sans looked at the core again.

"That's where you come in." He said sadly. "That prophecy is about you."


	23. Pacifist Route- The Core

_Wh... what?_

The human was the Malum-bringer? That was... that couldn't be real, right?

The human told Sans that Ama had said the prophecy was about an armored guardian, to which Sans responded, "Could just be a metaphor, kid. Don't think that you're getting off that easily."

Sans took a step forward. "Like I said, earlier, kid... souls with determination can view the alterations, but if you've got a freakish amount..." he chuckled. "...you can make alterations yourself. I'd call that a 'terrible power', wouldn't you?"

The human shook their head, saying that they'd never hurt their friends.

"Friends? You know as well as I do that this isn't your first trip around Te Deum... you consider them 'friends' in the same way that I consider ketchup a 'friend'." Sans's eyes hollowed, his chilling eye sockets seeming to bore into the child. "...and since I can't really let you go, I'm gonna have to judge you..."

Sans's left hand glowed with a blue flame, and he rested it on the child's shoulder. The human was too scared to do anything.

"Hmm... LV 1, huh?" His pupils returned, and he put his hand in his pocket. "Looks like you're not full of crap after all."

The child asked Sans what he meant by LV. "What's LV? LV, or LOVE, is an acronym for **Level of Violence**." Sans answered solemnly. "And your LV can only increase by gaining XP. XP, of course, is an acronym for **Execution Points**."

The child sighed in relief. They hadn't executed anybody, and they never planned on doing it.

"But you..." Sans closed his eyes. "...well, you may not be completely perfect, but at least you kept a certain spark inside your heart. That little spark that wanted to do the right thing." Sans clapped the child on their shoulder. "Don't ever take your conscience for granted, okay pal?"

The lights flickered, and Sans was gone.

The child left the core, walking back to Gaster's lab. Gaster was working on some new machine, and Alphys was helping him out. She handed him a small wire, and Gaster gently inserted it into the machine. Sparks flew out, and it coughed out smoke on the esteemed scientist's face.

"D-D-Dr. Gaster?" Alphys stuttered. Gaster sighed and crossed something out on a piece of paper. The child eagerly went over to see what they were working on. "Oh! H-h-human! Hello!" Alphys looked at the child. "We w-were just working on s-s-some modifications to my p-project." The human looked closer at the machine, thinking back to Alphys's and Flowey's agreement. She had called this machine the 'Determination Extractor'.

"Soon..." Dr. Gaster announced, "...we will not only be able to bring inanimate objects to life, we shall gain the capability to transfer one's soul to another's essence. The essence's memories shall be intact, and the monster will be reborn." Gaster tweaked the machine a few times with pliers, then looked at the child.

"Um..." he said, his eyes moving to look at someone behind the child. The human turned around to see good ol' Sans.

"Heya, boss-" "Don't call me boss!" Gaster snapped, turning back to his experiment. "You don't work for me anymore..."

"And you know why that is." Sans stared Gaster down. "I understand using a volunteer assistant in a project, but a civilian? Do you even _understand_ what happened to that poor girl?"

Gaster crossed his arms. "Amabilia was fully aware of the circumstances that we knew of at the time." He snorted. "I always thought you quit because you were just too lazy to do the job..."

Sans's eyes went dark again, and the whole room seemed to dim as well. Everyone took a step back from him.

"Heheheh..." Sans chuckled, the room lighting up again. "...I'm just joking, guys!" His pupils returned, and he nodded respectfully to Dr. Gaster. "Seeya, boss. Alphys, always nice to see you, too." Sans walked into the magma stabilizer room, vanishing from sight.

Dr. Gaster sighed, turning to the human. "I hear you're on your way to challenge the king..." he fiddled with his pliers. "I would wish you luck, except I'll have no one to employ me if you do get lucky." Alphys gave a nervous wave to the human, then went back to helping Gaster with the determination extractor.

The human eventually found their way out of the Mountain. The only thing that they could think of was how this could possibly lead to a better ending. They were still going to have to fight Asgore, and the Sentinel-

The Sentinel... he would've already been at the castle by now in the last timeline...

The child raced away from the mountain, heading to the castle to stop their misguided friend.


	24. Pacifist Route- Throne Room

The child threw the golden doors of the castle open, running down the hall. The doors leading to the throne room were already open, and the Sentinel was in the doorway, staring daggers at Asgore.

"King Asgore..." he said, stepping towards the throne.

"Just a moment, friend!" Asgore replied. "I have almost finished drinking my tea..." Asgore set down his empty teacup and looked at the enraged monster. "What seems to be the problem?"

The Sentinel stood silently, looking to his side. The expression in his eyes made it obvious that he wasn't having an easy time going through with this. "...you..." he looked back at him. "...how many children have you killed?"

Asgore looked down solemnly. "I've only done what was best for my people-" "You're lying." The Sentinel said, his fingers clenching in anger. "You destroy the lives of your people, sending them fleeing in fear..."

"What is the meaning of this?" Asgore said in confusion, stepping down from his throne and walking to the Sentinel. "Come, now, I'm sure we can talk this out-"

The Sentinel spun his spear, hitting Asgore in the face with the blunt end. " _You ruined our lives!"_ he shouted in fury. " _We could've lived out here in peace, but you killed my sibling and drove my mother away!"_ The king toppled to the ground in pain.

"Your mother?..." Asgore mumbled "...I've never hurt... a soul who is a part of my kingdom."

"Try again." The Sentinel said, tossing his family picture onto Asgore. "Seem familiar, hmm? Mom, my sibling, and I?"

"T-Toriel?" Asgore gasped. "She's your mother?" He looked at the picture again, tracing the face of his beloved wife and lost son. "Then that means you're-"

Asgore was greeted by a fireball in the face, just as the human reached the doors. The Sentinel sweeped his hand, setting the golden flowers ablaze.

"Your judgement has come!" The Sentinel leaped at Asgore, drawing his spear back, and Asgore was forced to pull out his trident to defend himself. "There is no need to fight!" Asgore said. "You're mistaken! Please let me explain-"

The Sentinel kicked him in the jaw, then knocked his feet out from under him. "Farewell, king of the island-"

Asgore fought back, spearing at the Sentinel with his trident to block the guardian's incoming spear. The moment the two spears crossed, the flames in the throne room burned brighter, climbing up the pillars and walls.

The child sidestepped any flowers on fire, trying not to get burned. The thunderous clash of the two monsters shook the castle, cracks racing up the walls. Asgore was the larger and stronger fighter, but the Sentinel was faster and way more aggressive. A fire was in his eyes, fueled by determination and justice.

The two combatants hacked menacingly at each other, with Asgore mostly on the defensive. The Sentinel slashed and stabbed quickly, his eyes in deep concentration. His spear got stuck in the prongs of Asgore's trident, and he twisted his wrist, making the trident clatter to the ground. The young guardian swung at the king, who grabbed his spear and tossed it away.

"Young one... fighting is not what we must-" The Sentinel kicked the king's chest, sending him into a pillar behind him. The pillar cracked, and a few blocks of cement fell from the ceiling.

"Give it up, child-slaughterer!" The Sentinel picked up his spear. "There's no escaping this!"

Asgore picked up his trident again, racing towards the Sentinel. They locked weapons again, their armor gleaming in the flames around them. Asgore lobbed a fireball at the Sentinel, backing him into a corner. The Sentinel hurled his trident at Asgore's head, making him duck. Then he ran and flipped over the king's head, delivering a roadhouse kick. The king tumbled into the corner, and the Sentinel seized the opportunity, dashing forward and unleashing a barrage of punches, growing more vicious with each blow.

The child walked out into the throne room, being careful not to step on any of the burning flowers. They looked at the Sentinel, whose look of determination and justice in his eyes had somehow been replaced with bloodlust.

Asgore quit fighting back, and the Sentinel clocked the king's head against the wall. Asgore groaned and rolled over, giving the Sentinel time to grab his spear again. The angry monster walked over, picking up his weapon, and went back to the fallen king.

The Sentinel raised his spear. "Die, you son of a-"

"My child!"

The Sentinel's head snapped, looking back to the doorway. The child looked over as well, seeing Toriel.

"My son!" She held out her arms. "Why are you doing this?" The Sentinel gripped his spear. "He's hurt you, mom. I've seen it. He... he killed my sibling, I know it-"

"Your sibling?" She tilted her head, looking at him. "How did you know about-" she looked down, seeing the family photograph. "Oh, my child..." she said, looking at him earnestly. "Please, you have been led astray!"

The Sentinel's spear wavered. "What... what are you saying?"

"Son... it is true that the king has murdered human children... but he would never lay a hair on your adopted sibling."

"Why?!" The Sentinel shouted, shaking his head in confusion. "Why not? He's upset you enough to make you flee to the ruins, what did he do to make you do that?"

"It's because... he lost a child." She said quietly. " _We_ lost a child..." The Sentinel frowned, then looked at the king with realization. He staggered backwards, dropping his spear to the ground. The spear landed with a _crunch_ onto the ashes that remained of the burned garden.

"Why didn't you tell me he was my father?" The Sentinel said quietly. Asgore's eyes opened again, and the Sentinel walked back and took a knee next to him. "M-my child..." he said, reaching up and touching his son's face. "The legends are true..."

"What legends?" The Sentinel looked over, jumping when he saw the human. "Human, when did you get here-"

"My son..." Asgore smiled. "...Asriel, you're alive..."

The Sentinel frowned and tilted his head. The human couldn't help but smile at such a sweet moment.

"Asriel? Who's Asriel?" The Sentinel gave a confused look. "My name's Togore. Togore Dreemurr."

The child's jaw dropped. _He's NOT Asriel? But... he's the king's son..._

"NYE-HEH-HEH!" Papyrus raced through the door, puffing his chest out proudly. "DON'T WORRY, KING ASGORE! I AM HERE TO SAVE YOU! OR, IF YOU PREFER... THE GREAT PAPYRUS IS HERE TO SAVE YOU!"

Sans walked out of the back room, looking over at Asgore. "'Sup, buddy?" The skeleton tipped his hat to the king, then looked over at the Sentinel. "Looks like we've _goat_ a problem."

The king cringed at the pun, while Toriel and the Sentinel... Togore... whoever he was... laughed at it.

"NNNGGGAAAAAHHH!" Undyne raced out of the doors to the throne room, and lept through the air. A spear appeared in her hand, and she flew at Togore.

Togore took a small step to his left, and Undyne flew into a pillar.

Alphys and Gaster also walked in, looking around the decimated room. "This place is going to need a serious remodeling..." Gaster remarked in amusement.

The child asked all their friends why they were here.

"IT'S SIMPLE!" Papyrus said. "ONCE ALPHYS HAD REALIZED THAT THE SENTINEL IS TORIEL'S SON, SHE GATHERED US ALL TOGETHER. WE WENT INTO THE RUINS AND CONVINCED TORIEL THAT HER SON WAS GOING AFTER THE KING."

Sans nodded in agreement. "Look, kid..." he said to the Sentinel. "...you've got to be careful with what you hear. Don't know how you don't remember everything that happened, but it sounds like someone led you to believe that he killed your sibling. But, be that as it may..." Sans looked at Togore nervously. "...I hope we can get over what happened last time we met, Asriel."

"What is going on here?" Togore asked, looking at the band of fighters (and Papyrus) in confusion. "I'd ask you the same thing." Sans looked at him. "So... you're... _not..._ Asriel?" Togore shook his head, and Sans whistled in relief. "That would've been awkward..."

"Why? Who's Asriel?" Togore asked. The child smiled and walked over to their friends, ready to explain everything, when their feet were snatched from under them, and lifted by vines into the air.

"Hee hee hee..." Flowey popped out of the ground, staring at the human. "...what a bunch of IDIOTS!" He grinned. "While you guys were having your little 'long-lost relatives anonymous session'... I took the human souls!" Flowey laughed and turned to the band of monsters. "And now... not only are _those_ going to be mine..." a huge vine snared all of the monsters, holding them above the ground. "But all of your friends souls will be mine!"

The child struggled, to no avail. Flowey cackled in glee and looked at Sans. "Howdy, Sans!" Flowey grinned mischievously. "It's been a while, huh? Since that little 'disagreement' on the road..." He sneered, and a drop of sweat dripped down the skeleton's head. "Well, you had it coming to you... you ALL had it coming!"

He looked at Toriel first. "Unable to let anything go..."

He sneered at Togore. "...awkward, and gullible. Not to mention that scary streak of anger that you seem to have..."

Next was Papyrus. "...a pompous idiot..."

Undyne tried to pry her way out of the vines as Flowey remarked, "...brash, aggressive, doesn't think before fighting..."

Alphys shuddered in fear as Flowey grinned at her. "...scaredy-cat, scared enough to strike a deal with a _real_ monster..."

Flowey smirked at Gaster. "...rude. Just plain rude..." "Hey!" Gaster snapped. "You little imbecile!"

Finally, he faced Asgore. "...can't think outside the box, choosing to kill rather than a more difficult, peaceful way..."

Flowey looked back at the human. "Now... it's time for me to regain my REAL form!' Flowey laughed, ready to absorb the monsters, but the child shouted, proposing a counter offer.

"What? _Your_ soul?" Flowey grinned maliciously. "You're more of an IDIOT than I would've ever dreamed!"

Flowey dropped the monsters, and absorbed the seventh human soul.


	25. Pacifist Route- The Final Battle

Togore Dreemurr awoke to an empty void. Startled, he jumped to his feet, readying his spear. Togore had been training in combat in his free time for most of his life. He had believed that, one day, it would help him take down the king.

That is, until he learned that king Asgore was actually his father.

Togore looked around, seeing his parents on the ground. "Mom!" He raced over, shaking her shoulder to get her to wake up. She was breathing, but still didn't move. He turned to his father.

"Dad-Asgore-Uh... what should I call you..." Togore cringed at himself, he really needed to develop social skills if he was going to continue pursuing Ama.

 _Ama..._ he thought for a second, his mind flashing back to eating with her at the Sandbar. Her laugh... her hair... her eyes... he hadn't seen anything like it, and that one small meal had been the most fun he'd ever had.

He shook his head, refocusing. Togore shook the king, and Asgore opened an eye.

"Oh, hello, my son." He looked around. "Hm. Seems our little scuffle destroyed more of the castle than I thought..." "No, da- _Asgore..._ " Togore sighed. "...it's that flower... I'm not exactly sure what he did, but-"

Togore stopped speaking when he saw some other monsters stagger to their feet. The loud lifeguard was there, along with his brother. Undyne, the royal guardswoman whom had scarred Togore years ago was also there, along with the two royal scientists.

Togore slowly walked over to them, asking, "What's going on?" They were all looking behind Togore in confusion, except Sans. He looked more... 'distressed'... or... 'guilt-ridden'.

Togore slowly turned his head. "What's... behind..."

A small monster stood, wearing a striped shirt and a small crown upon his head. He was hanging his head, Togore was unable to make out the monster's face. The monster's shoulders trembled a little, and he wiped his eyes, sniffling.

 _Is he CRYING?_ Togore thought.

"Finally..." The little monster whispered in a child-like voice. "...I was so tired of being a flower." The monster raised his head, and Togore heard a gasp behind him. Toriel had woken up, and now she was covering her mouth, collapsing in shock. Asgore and Sans caught her as her eyes watered.

"Howdy!" The monster said in a friendly tone. He looked at all the monsters in front of him, his eyes settling on Togore. "Chara, is that you?"

 _FLASH!_ The monster had changed, growing to about seven feet tall, and hovering in the air. He was clothed with a robe only a monster of royal lineage would wear, bearing the delta rune. Togore looked down at the banner over his own armor, which had the faded outline of the same symbol.

"It's me, your brother..." lights began flashing around them, and spelled out a name.

 _ **ASRIEL DREEMURR**_

"Asriel?" Asgore asked, earning a dark chuckle from his resurrected son.

Asriel unleashed a barrage of fire, scattering the group of monsters. Togore looked back at Asriel, the pieces beginning to fit together in his mind...

Yes, Togore had an adopted human sibling. But they had died before Togore was born... The small monster in the family photograph wasn't Togore, it was Asriel. Both Asriel and the adopted human must've died, which caused Asgore to upset Toriel. The legends about the queen leaving while carrying a child... they were true, but not of Asriel. She must have still been pregnant with Togore when she left, and Asgore never found out.

" _ **It's the end...**_ " Asriel proclaimed, raising his arms. The air began humming with power, until everything around Asriel was a vortex of color.

"Hey, punk!" Undyne shouted, catching Asriel's attention. "End THIS!" She hurled a spear at Asriel's head, but he stuck out his hand. The spear dissolved before it even touched him.

"Yeah... I don't think fighting is gonna help with him." Sans said, still looking at Asriel with hesitation. Asriel shrugged his shoulders and laughed.

" _ **You know... I don't really care about taking your soul anymore...**_ " Asriel seemed to be speaking directly to Togore. Asriel raised his arms again, vanishing. Togore heard something above him, and looked up to see stars falling towards him. Togore quickly leaped out of the way, and heard the stars explode. Asriel's chuckle was heard, and he reappeared.

" _ **After I defeat you and gain the total power of determination? I'm going to rewrite EVERYTHING.**_ " Togore stepped back, looking back at Asgore and Toriel. The two were still in shock and grief over seeing their son again. Togore then looked to the right. Papyrus was currently trying to make himself look intimidating, applying gel to spike up hair that didn't exist. Alphys and Gaster couldn't really do anything, they had no science equipment, and Sans... something really, _really_ awful must have happened between Sans and Asriel, because the normally cool and confident skeleton was on the edge of a nervous breakdown.

Asriel laughed, looking at the chaos below. " _ **All these chapters... all these memories... I'll set it all back to nothing!**_ " a sword appeared in each of his hands. " _ **Then... we can flip through this story all over again!**_ "

Asriel slashed away at Togore, forcing his brother to back up. Asriel relented after a while, and returned to hovering in the air like a demonic hummingbird.

Togore turned around while Asriel wasn't attacking. "Everyone, LISTEN!" The group of monsters stopped what they were doing and looked at Togore. "Guys... our friend is in him... Asriel has the human's soul! And unless we do something..." he stopped and looked down. "...we may never see them again. Everything they've done for us... and all we've done for them... it won't matter anymore..."

Toriel and Asgore looked up at their son, finally wiping the last of their tears away. Papyrus quit applying gel to his skull and tried to comfort Sans. Undyne set her spear down, trying to think of a form of communication besides combat. And Alphys and Gaster... well... they began to give a scientific lecture to a puzzled Asriel, distracting him.

"Papyrus... you've got..." Togore struggled to think of something. "...lifeguard experience? Use that for... something!" That had come out less structured and detailed than Togore had intended...

Papyrus went up to Asriel, pulling out a tube of sunblock. He squeezed it in the goat prince's face, watching as Asriel glared at him in confusion and rage.

"THERE YOU GO, PRINCE ASRIEL!" Papyrus patted Asriel's head like a puppy. "NOW YOU WON'T GET BURNED BY ALL THE FIREBALLS AND STARS THAT YOU KEEP LOBBING AT US!" Asriel gritted his teeth, eventually cracking a smile and laughing.

The lights dimmed, and Asriel flickered a little. He shook his head wildly, wiping the sunblock off his face, and pointed at the monsters.

" _ **You truly believe that you can stop me? Ura-ha-ha! This battle's already over...**_ " he vanished again, and Togore's hair stood on end.

 _What, does that mean that there's-_ Lightning struck Togore, sending him flying backwards. _Lightning. Of course he has lightning powers._

Asriel reappeared, floating around the air. Undyne raced up to him. "Hey, punk! You probably know me, sooooo..." she pulled out a pen and paper. "...I know that you'd love my autograph!" A childish light lit up Asriel's black eyes, and he grinned happily. He stretched his arm out to get an autograph, then cringed and went back to 'kill kill kill' mode.

 _That's it!_ Togore thought to himself. _We're reminding him of what it was like when he was alive... if we keep it up, maybe we can beat him..._

"Mom! Asgore!" Togore called, racing over to his parents. "We might not have a lot of time-"

" _ **Oh, we have time...**_ " Asriel smirked. " _ **We have all the time left in this pathetic world.**_ " He hurled stars down again, making everyone run in different directions.

"Listen!" Togore called out over the sound of the stars exploding. "You need to talk to him! If he remembers his life, he might realize that what he's doing is wrong!" He pointed at Asriel. "You're his parents, too, so you two are our best bet..." Toriel and Asgore nodded, running up to their son.

"My child..." Toriel said, smiling gently at her son. "...it's been almost thirty years, hasn't it?" She stretched out her arms in a welcoming way. "We've all missed you so much..." Asriel took a step forward, wanting to hug his mother, but he grunted and backed away, summoning his swords again.

" _ **You're wanting to welcome me back to a broken family?**_ " Asriel sneered. " _ **I know that you and dad aren't together anymore...**_ "

"That was because I made an error in my anger..." Asgore said, stepping in front of Toriel. "...I hurt her by acting so terribly. But, truthfully..." Asgore looked into his son's eyes. "...all I wanted was to see my children again." Asriel reached out again, then pulled his hand back. " _ **No...**_ " he swiped his swords at the king. " _ **I'm not what I used to be! I can't live in this world anymore!**_ " Asriel took a deep breath and stepped back. " _ **It's time for me to end this world... and make it the way that I want it!**_ " Asriel vanished again, being replaced with a huge vision of his head.

Sans whistled in slight amusement. "Wish I could summon something like that..."

"Sans!" Togore looked at him. "Asriel knew you once... you can make him remember you now." Sans shook his head. "That poor kid... he wouldn't have died if I'd-"

"Sans!" Togore snapped, looking at the broken skeleton in the eye. "You have to put whatever you did behind you, behind both of you..."

The vision of Asriel's head began to laugh, preparing for an attack. "Sans..." Togore said, looking to see that Sans had disappeared. He looked around frantically, spotting him in front of the giant head.

"Heya, kiddo." Sans said. "Well... I think we remember what happened last time you were about to hit me." He stretched out his arms, making himself an easy target. "Go ahead, kill me."

The head closed its mouth, looking down at Sans.

"See, A-Team?" Sans asked, using what sounded like a nickname for Asriel. "All that stuff you said about not being yourself? We both know that's a load of crap." Sans chuckled. "You're still the same kid. The same Asriel-"

The head flashed, turning back into Asriel. " _ **Grrrrrr... NO!**_ " Asriel held a star in his hand. " _ **I'm not a kid! I'm the Prince of Hyperdeath!**_ " Togore cracked up at the dorky title Asriel had concocted for himself, but he shut up when stars began falling again.

"Welp." Sans popped up next to Togore. "What's our plan now?"

Togore had no idea what to do. Everyone had talked to Asriel- Alphys and Gaster with the science lecture, Papyrus with the sunblock, Undyne with the autograph, Asgore, Toriel, and Sans had all spoken with him about who he was. It seemed everyone had tried their own way of reasoning with him.

Well, everyone except for one...

Togore stepped forward, putting himself between Asriel and his newfound friends. "Asriel... fighting us isn't going to solve anything. All it's going to do is cause new problems for you to fix."

Asriel clapped his hands over his ears. " _ **Leave me ALONE!**_ " Asriel raised his arms to attack again, but all the confidence and determination in him had been short-circuited by Togore's truthful statement.

"You don't have to fight us, brother. We're your family..." " _ **What do you know about family, Chara?!**_ " Asriel responded.

 _That's the second incorrect name I've been called today..._ Togore complained in his mind.

"Family... " Togore began. "...are the people who never lose memories of you. They always remember who you are and what you were like. Family is always there to help you, no matter what." Togore smiled softly at his brother. "Family... never gives up on you. They... they always keep you in their hopes and dreams."

Asriel roared in frustration, trying to attack again. He failed.

" _ **You don't know what I am! You don't know what I've done! You don't know how it is to feel nothing... not a thing for people you cared about or would've cared about...**_ " Asriel said, raising up into the air. " _ **Please, Chara... it's best if we just forget... it's best if we just leave this... it's best if we never have to go through anything like this nightmare ever again...**_ " Asriel snapped his fingers, and all the other monsters besides Togore vanished.

"No! Asriel!" Togore raced towards his overpowered and mad-with-power brother, determined to stop him from causing any more harm to himself, or anyone.

" _ **Chara, please!**_ " Asriel's voice choked. " _ **JUST LET ME WIN!**_ "

Asriel raised his arms, giving one final attempt at an attack, but not before Togore hugged his brother for the first time.

"I'm not Chara..." Togore said. "...Asriel, you have to stop."

Suddenly, all the lights were gone. The battle was over. Asriel was a child again, holding onto his brother's shoulders for dear life.

"I'm sorry, Togore..." Asriel cried, shaken by the sins crawling on his back. "I'm so, _so_ sorry..."


	26. Pacifist Route- Epilogue

The human gasped for breath, opening their eyes. That hadn't been a pleasant experience.

 _What happened? How did I come back?_

The child vaguely remembered the battle that had just taken place, Asriel had used the determination of their soul to try to rewrite the timeline. But having the determination sucked out of you wasn't exactly pain-free, so they had blacked out midway through the fight.

"I'm so, _so_ sorry!"

The child heard the tearful apology of a child to their right, and turned to see Togore holding his brother. The child blinked, this couldn't be real...

They slowly walked over, not understanding why Asriel was a sweet, harmless goat child again. Asriel wouldn't even look at Togore, instead opting to bury his face in his bigger brother's shoulder. "I've hurt everyone again... I just wanted to make things better..." Asriel managed to say. "Why would you want to help me?"

Togore looked down at his brother and smiled. "Like I said, whether I know you or not, you're family. I don't believe in giving up on any member of your family, no matter what they've done..." he sighed and closed his eyes. "...I haven't... been the best example of dealing with what people have done to me, and it almost caused me to hurt someone who was closer to me than I imagined."

Asriel finally got the courage to look up. "I... I didn't have a soul, and that..." he wiped his eyes as Togore set him down to talk. "...that made it impossible to love other people. I couldn't care about what happened to them, so I started using them for... amusement." Asriel looked away from Togore, and when he looked to the side and saw the human, he quickly looked away again.

"And you..." Asriel gulped and nervously looked at the child. "...what is your name?" Asriel asked that question as if he didn't truly expect the human to answer.

"Frisk." The child said, giving a reassuring smile.

Asriel managed to smile. "That's a nice name." The human walked closer. "I could say the same about the name Asriel..." Frisk said, trying to make him feel better.

"Listen, brother..." Togore took a knee, and Asriel finally was able to look at Togore in the eyes. "...I'm not one to call anyone out on being angry... I mean, you saw what I almost did to Asgore-" "No thanks to me." Asriel interrupted. "I made you think he killed Chara, my human sibling."

Frisk spoke up as soon as Asriel had finished. "But you've turned away from that. Asriel, we know that you had a good heart. I mean, they have a story of how you chose peace over fighting." They smiled as Asriel looked at them. "Just because you lived a life apart from that doesn't mean that you can't ever go back to that."

"Frisk is right!" Togore said, grinning at his brother. "You're yourself again, brother! We can take you back to our parents, live in the castle, and..." He looked at Frisk and smiled. "...and we can all finally be a family."

Asriel sniffled again, another tear sliding down his face. He wiped it, and laughed nervously. "I always was a crybaby..." he sighed and looked at the human. "...but I can't stay. I don't have a soul of my own, so..." Togore frowned. "You're saying you're going to turn back into a-" "...yeah." Asriel looked down again.

Togore looked at Frisk in desperation. "We'll do something... we'll find some way..."

Asriel shook his head. "I've returned the human souls to their rightful place. There is no other way." He stood up and smiled softly at his brother. "Well..." he gave a small wave. "...Bye, guys." He turned and started walking away into the darkness. But Asriel was only able to walk so far before running back and hugging the human and his brother.

"Take care of our family, okay?" He asked, looking up at his brother. _This is, like, the softest hug ever..._ Frisk thought.

"I promise. I'll find the best way to take care of us." Togore swore. Asriel nodded, and slowly pulled away, walking into the darkness.

When Asriel disappeared from sight, the darkness around the child receded, turning back into the vandalized throne room. Papyrus, Sans, Undyne, Alphys, Gaster, Toriel, and Asgore all reappeared.

"Hm? Is it over?" Asgore asked, then frowned as he looked around the room. "Where... where's Asriel?"

Togore sighed sadly. "He said... He said that he can't live with us. But..." he walked to Asgore and Toriel. "...I'm going to try to be the best son for you two that I can, okay?"

Toriel smiled. "You've always tried for me, and I'm sure you'll try for your father." Asgore looked saddened by the absence of Asriel, but smiled when Togore started speaking. "My son... your mother's fate is up to her, but I beseech of you to come to the castle, and live here." He waved his hand around the room. "You saw how nice this place was before our... um... disagreement, but you'd get to live in this place." He looked over at Undyne. "And your fighting capability, Togore, has prompted me to make you the co-captain of the royal guard."

Togore gave a nervous look at Undyne, who actually seemed happy about that. "Yeah! That's a great idea, Asgore! The Sentinel showed some AWESOME leadership back when we were with Asriel!" She grinned at him. "You're going to be an EPIC royal guard! They'll tell stories about us beating the crap out of bad guys for CENTURIES!"

Frisk smiled. _It's good to finally see them getting along..._

Togore nodded and looked at Papyrus. "My first order as co-captain of the royal guard, is to make Papyrus an official junior royal guard!"

Papyrus gasped in joy, his eyes lighting up. "WOWIE! I'M A MEMBER OF THE ROYAL GUARD! AT LAST, MY DREAM HAS COME TRUE!"

Undyne leaned over and whispered in Togore's ear, "Are you sure that's the best idea?"

"We'll just have him guard the beach for now." He said. "We'll start training him once we get everything that's happened in order." Frisk chuckled, realizing that basically made Papyrus a glorified lifeguard.

Sans walked over to the child. "It's good to see you again, kiddo." He stretched his arms and yawned. "I hope everything works out for you guys."

Gaster cleared his throat, drawing everyone's attention to him. "I have important news for the king: We finished modifying the determination extractor before we got here."

Asgore smiled. "Goody! What does it do now?" Gaster sighed. "It allows us to transfer one's soul to the essence of a monster-"

"What did you say?!" Togore said earnestly, turning the doctor towards him. "Just soul transfer. The essence that receives the soul will retain their memories and personality, almost as if they'd never died."

Asgore nodded. "And what would we use this for, Dr. Gaster?"

Gaster stared blankly, not sure how to answer. "Alphys!" He snapped his fingers. "We must go back to work."

Alphys nodded, but turned to the human. "H-hey... I owe you a lot, Frisk." She said. "I u-u-used to be so s-scared of everything, but because I m-m-met you, I learned that I'm really c-c-capable!" She smiled. "I mean, I-I-I stood up to a m-monster with seven h-h-human souls! Do y-you have any idea o-o-of how hopeless our s-situation was?" Frisk shrugged. They didn't want to know.

Alphys waved goodbye, walking back to the lab with Gaster."Welp... I'm out." Sans said, walking towards the back room. "I'm heading to the Sandbar, you guys can join if you want."

Papyrus sighed. "I DON'T KNOW HOW HE GETS ANYWHERE. HE ALWAYS GOES IN THE WRONG DIRECTION." Papyrus and Undyne looked at their fellow guardsman, whose head was bowed in concentration.

"ARE YOU ALRIGHT, SENTINEL?" Papyrus asked.

Togore looked back at his parents. "I..." he walked over and hugged his mother. "...I have to go do something, mom." Toriel smiled. "Go do it, my child." Togore nodded and then looked at Asgore. "I... I'm sorry for what I did to you... dad."

Asgore beamed. "Do not worry, my son." Togore nodded and hugged Asgore as well. "Stay determined, son." Togore smiled and started walking away. "Don't worry... your child will come back." He said, then turned around.

"Wait... _As_ gore and To _riel_... did you name _Asriel_ After your names combined? Like a ship name?" He shook his head. "Why would... wait... _To_ riel and As _gore_... oh, no..."

The child laughed when they realized that Togore had also been named after his parents' ship name. The Sentinel shook his head, walking past Frisk. "Hey..." he looked at them. "...you'll... can you do me a favor? Tell Ama that I miss her, and..." his voice got quieter. "...and I... have... significant feelings... towards her..."

They nodded, laughing at Togore's awkwardness. "Yeah, why?" Frisk asked. Togore looked hesitantly at the child, then patted their shoulder.

"Goodbye..." he said, walking out the exit.

Some time passed, and Frisk was getting worried. They had no idea where Togore had gone. Asgore was chatting with Undyne and Papyrus, and Toriel was standing next to Frisk.

"Well..." she smiled. "...I suppose you're probably going to leave us, am I correct?" Frisk shook their head. "No. I want to stay here with you."

Toriel smiled. "If you had said that before, none of this would have happened." But... I suppose it's good that you waited so long to make up your mind." She rubbed the child's hair. "I suppose I'll find somewhere in the castle to live, so I can stay close to my children-"

Asgore turned around. "You know, Tori... maybe we could-"

"NO, Asgore." Toriel said bluntly, and Asgore went back to talking with his two royal guards.

Toriel sighed. "I wonder what's taking Togore so long..." Frisk abruptly left the throne room. Something was wrong...

They raced towards the hat shop, opening the door.

"Ama!" They shouted, making Ama jump. "Was Togore here?"

"No." Ama said, shaking her head. "I wish that awkward stud was here..." she laughed. "...why do you ask?"

Frisk hesitated for a moment, then remembered what Togore had asked them. "He... He wanted to say that he misses you, and... well, he didn't exactly say it this way, but... He loves you." Ama smiled and looked up, blushing. "Well... I... I suppose you could say that I feel the same way..." Frisk nodded and left the store.

Any monsters that were out and about were asked if they had seen the Sentinel by Frisk. A few of them hadn't, but most of them said they had seen him heading into the volcano. Frisk thanked them, and went to Alphys's lab.

Alphys smiled when they walked in. "H-hi, Frisk!" She said. "Why a-a-are you back here?" "Where's Togore?" Frisk asked. Alphys shrugged. "I-I-I don't know e-exactly where, b-b-but he asked to go to G-Gaster's lab. I told him that Gaster wasn't back, b-but-"

Frisk asked Alphys for access to his lab, and Alphys let the child inside.

There was someone in the center of the room, staring ahead blankly. Frisk tilted their head.

"Asriel?"

Asriel turned around, his eyes red with tears. "He...he's gone..." Asriel told them. Frisk looked around the room, seeing the determination extractor. There was a pile of dust in front of it...

A wave of realization came over Frisk, and they slowly walked towards Asriel.

Asriel wiped his eyes. "Why would he do that?" He looked at Frisk helplessly. "Why would he give me his soul? I..." he turned his head to the extractor. "...He didn't even know me."

Frisk knew the answer. "Because you never lived the full life that you could've, and he swore to take care of you." Asriel sniffled. "So... what now?"

Frisk sat next to Asriel. "We go back to mom and dad." Asriel smiled. "That's a nice thought, but-" "Don't think about what you did." Frisk interrupted. "That's behind you."

Asriel looked around the lab. "I guess I was wrong about this being a 'better ending'..." Asriel mourned. Frisk looked over at Asriel. "You're back. That's just about the best ending we could all ask for."

Asriel sighed, and sat in silence with the human in the lab for a while.

The door opened, and Gaster looked in surprise at the children.

"Prince Asriel!" He said, making the children turn around. "You're alive again! I have so much to tell you about the mechanics of timelines-" "That's our cue to go." Frisk said, making Asriel laugh.

The two walked down the path to the castle, and they both finally realized what they had searched for on the surface this whole time.

Family.


	27. Scorched Earth Route- Prologue

After news spread of the prince's return, the people of the underground further rallied around Asgore. His word was held in even higher respect than it had been before, and the island kingdom flourished under his reign.

Dr. W.D. Gaster scrapped the determination extractor after learning what the Sentinel had done. He announced that, _"While his fate was an honorable one, the machine may be used for far worse deeds, and I simply don't have the paycheck to keep it running."_ He resigned after several years, leaving his position open to Dr. Alphys

Dr. Alphys brought a halt to all research on determination, saying that it was unnecessary. It had been years since Frisk had passed through the barrier, and no humans afterward had followed.

Toriel lived in one of the castle's many towers, treasuring her second chance to raise Asriel. She also raised Frisk, accepting the human as her own.

Surprisingly, one of the people hurt the worst by the death of the Sentinel was Undyne. She had an immense amount of respect for him, and she had looked forward to leading the royal guard with him. Years after, she always referred to him as, 'The only punk better than me at my own game'.

Yet even Undyne's sorrow could not match the heartbreak felt by Amabilia. She continued to run her hat shop, but everyone who went there said that the place felt like it had its heart ripped out.

'The Great Papyrus', as he is known by monster children across the island, became the subject of tall tales and folklore. Legends say that he began his long history of being a famous royal guard by defeating foes in silly, unpredictable ways. A few examples are distracting an opponent by flexing muscles he didn't have, and confusing the infamous 'Prince of Hyperdeath' by squirting sunblock in his face. Stories about him were taught to children in school.

Sans continued expanding his hotel business, until nobody wanted to live in houses anymore. Annoyed by the hustle and bustle created by his hotels (which kept the skeleton awake when he was trying to take a nap), he ordered that they all be torn down, and replaced with housing. His real estate business was also a surprising success, and he retired in wealth, almost as rich as the king. In fact, he personally oversaw the redecorating of the king's throne room. When he retired, his brother Papyrus had no interest in real estate, so the company was left to Sans's close friend, Asriel Dreemurr. Asriel was too occupied with his current duties, so he let a former employee named Napstablook take over the company.

Togore Dreemurr, Sentinel of the Ruins, was buried in a bed of golden flowers in the ruins. His death was mourned by his family for a long time, but they eventually focused on coming together like Togore had wanted. His spear was left to Undyne, and his armor decorates a statue of him outside the front of the castle. Families across Te Deum lived by the standards of family that led the young Sentinel to sacrifice himself, keeping his legacy alive. High-ranking royal guards, after his death, were thereafter referred to as 'Sentinels'.

Asriel Dreemurr was accepted by his family with open arms, and he lived a happy life with his adopted sibling and best friend, Frisk. The prince personally communicated with the monsters of the island on behalf of his father, and he knew most of the locals by name. He was outspoken on subjects of family, making moral decisions, and staying determined. The prince quickly became loved by everyone he met, it was a life that him, and others, benefited from. That was, until Asgore died when Asriel was in his late twenties. Faced with the grief of losing his father, and the task of being king set upon his shoulders, Asriel slowly spiraled into a period of blaming himself for his father and brother's deaths. He became despondent, staying in his throne room as his past as Flowey haunted the young king. But with the help of his sibling, Asriel was once again able to claw his way out of a dark spot. The people lived in peace, happily working whatever job they could, and were encouraged by the king to be wise and hard-working in all that they did. King Asriel was forever remembered as Te Deum's greatest king.

Frisk was key to restoring Asriel's confidence in himself, being the only one the young king would speak to for a long time. Asriel told them much of the atrocities they had committed as a flower, trying to rid himself of the demons that had haunted him all his life. But when Asriel started to recover, Frisk began to ponder about the power of determination. They wondered what else there could be to the world... what else they could do. But they always kept themselves in check. Happy with the life they had now, they aided king Asriel in his work for years. But then, something terribly tragic happened.

And the human began to question if this was the ending that was supposed to happen after all...

((Hey, everyone! I'd like to thank those who have supported my work and dedicated some of their time to reading this story. Now, I know you're probably wondering, _This story is called 'The Timeline of Doom', but where's all the doom? Is this guy a moron? Why isn't he writing about death and destruction? Why is he writing down what he thinks I'm thinking?_ But don't worry... this is the route the whole story has been leading up to. Once again, thanks for reading, even if you don't particularly like the story! And to answer a question about the humans having happy endings... who said there were any humans left in the underground?))


	28. Scorched Earth Route- The Ruins

_A blinding light... the feeling of a cold, stone floor... a cold breeze flowing through the air..._

It was all exactly as Frisk remembered. Their first view of the surface.

Frisk slowly got up, taking in the surroundings. It had been many years since they had seen the ruins. It reminded them too much of-

 _WHOOSH!_ A gust of cold wind blew at the child, and they looked to see that an ornate spear had been slammed into the ground in front of them.

"Who passes?" A voice demanded. Frisk couldn't help but smile.

Togore Dreemurr emerged from the shadows, giving Frisk a curious look. "You're... smiling?" He scratched his head. "Not to sound rude, but I'm confused as to why you aren't surprised or scared."

Frisk ran to Togore and hugged him. Togore was shocked, of course, but Frisk didn't care. It felt incredible, getting to see a friend they had thought was gone forever. But there he stood.

"Uh..." Togore stood awkwardly. "...greetings. I am the Sentinel of the ruins." Frisk nodded, not letting Togore go. They didn't want to-

Pellets flew at Togore, knocking him into the wall, and he blacked out.

 _Oh, yeah... forgot about that part..._

Flowey popped up from the ground, his face twisting in disgust when he saw Frisk. "YOU?" He spat. "Don't you have ANYTHING better to do?!"

Frisk rolled their eyes, walking over to help Togore.

"Oh, no... but you're not here to look for a 'better ending', are you?" Frisk paused, trying not to think about why they came back. "No... you're here to see what happens, huh? What your determination can REALLY do!" Flowey giggled. "And I thought _I_ was soulless..."

Frisk turned around in annoyance. "Shut up." They snapped. "Aww... don't worry, pal!" Flowey grinned like a madman. "I've been saving something for _just_ this occasion!" Flowey looked over at the unconscious sentinel. "Now, I'm not talking about you killing everything yourself. I mean, come on." He smirked. "Regular genocide is just cliche at this point. I'm talking about being a puppet master... let someone else do the dirty work. It's so much fun!" Flowey laughed. "Watching someone you used to love and respect tear apart their friends!"

Flowey slithered closer, still looking at Togore. "Hmm... I haven't experimented with _him_ yet... how about we do it together?" Flowey's grin widened. "Let's tear someone of such 'dignity'... someone with flaws, but tries to do the right thing... let's bring someone 'respectable' over to our line of thinking!" Flowey looked at Frisk. "Don't worry, this can't _possibly_ get out of hand. He's either going to die by someone trying to stop him... or by his own hand in despair!"

Flowey laughed, sinking back into the ground. Frisk remembered all the work they had done in the last timeline with Asriel... fighting to preserve morality, dignity, and respect. But now, they really had nothing better to do. _It won't be permanent..._ Frisk told themself. _I'll just see what happens, and then reset again._ Frisk had changed much since they had first came to the surface, and although they knew this probably wasn't right, they just _had_ to see what might happen...

Togore grumbled, getting back to his feet. "Stupid flower..." He said. Frisk shuddered at the thought of what they were about to do, then asked Togore about his plan of vengeance.

"How do you... nevermind..." Togore waved his hand dismissively. "I don't have time for this-"

Flowey popped up again, grinning at Togore. "Howdy, pal!" "Go away!" Togore said in frustration, hurling his spear. The flower ducked, narrowly avoiding becoming a Flowey-ka-bob.

"Angry, are we?" Flowey taunted. "All that anger will serve you well once you take on the king." Togore ignored the flower, pulling his spear from the ground and brushing the dirt off of it. "Tell me something... how far would you go to avenge your family?"

Togore hesitantly darted his eyes at Flowey. "As... as far as it takes..."

Flowey nodded. "I couldn't help but notice that you're already a decent fighter..." The flower giggled. "...think of how much stronger you'd be with a lot of XP..."

Togore looked at Flowey in disgust. "Are you suggesting... that I _kill_ people who don't deserve it just to get what I want?" Flowey smirked. "You almost killed me a minute ago..."

Togore's eyes flashed with anxiety, but he shook his head. "No. I'll never sink to your level." He turned and headed back to Toriel's house. "Well... no one said this would be easy..." Flowey remarked, looking at Frisk. "...you should go with him... make sure that he stays on the right path, if you know what I mean." Flowey laughed and sank into the ground, leaving Frisk alone and full of shame.

Frisk followed Togore to Toriel's house, wondering why they were actually listening to Flowey. Were they that far gone? _Well, who wouldn't be, after-_

Frisk stopped thinking. They didn't want to remember the event that had happened in the last timeline, even though they should've known it would've happened eventually.

Togore was opening the door when he noticed that Frisk had followed him. "Why are you...ugh, whatever." Togore reluctantly let Frisk inside, and Frisk opted to head to the spare room, rather than face Toriel.

"Human! Where are you going?" Toriel's kind voice was heard, and Frisk stopped. They slowly looked behind them, seeing their adoptive mother. She smiled curiously at the human.

 _You know what's probably going to happen..._ Frisk thought. They nodded politely to Toriel, then walked into the spare room and shut the door.

Frisk collapsed on the bed, listening to a conversation in the living room.

"Did you see that? The child knew exactly where your spare room was."

"It was probably a lucky guess, Togore. Why do you seem so nervous?"

"I don't know... something just doesn't seem right..."

"Do not worry, my child. It's an innocent human youth, how bad could it possibly be?"

Frisk pulled the pillow over their ears to blot out the conversation. It was only making this new journey more difficult than it had to be.


	29. Scorched Earth Route- The Ruins II

Frisk kept delaying what needed to be done for around a week, with each night putting them in more and more turmoil. Flowey would show up every time, laughing at Frisk. _You know what you want to do..._ He'd taunt. _Why delay the inevitable?_

Eventually, Flowey got to them. Frisk couldn't handle the situation of knowing what was about to happen to everyone they cared about. They headed downstairs to the ruins exit, making sure to make enough noise to get Toriel to follow them.

They were most of the way down the hall, when Flowey popped his head from around a corner. "Psst... I've got something to tell you, pal." Frisk sighed and turned the corner, seeing the door to exit the ruins. Flowey motioned to the crumbling pillar beside the door. "If we want the Sentinel to go berserk on all the inhabitants of the island, we're going to have to make him _really, really_ angry... Angry enough to do anything for revenge..." Frisk realized what Flowey was asking then to do.

"No... no, not mom!" Frisk shook their head. "Why her?"

Flowey didn't answer, disappearing from sight.

"My child?" Frisk saw Toriel walking towards them. "My child, _get away from that door!_ " Toriel grabbed the human and pulled them from the door. Her hands lit up with fire, and she turned to destroy the door, getting rid of Frisk's only way out.

 _I don't have to do this..._ Frisk thought. "Human?" Another voice called out. Frisk saw the Sentinel looking at them in confusion. "What's going on?"

" _I'm sorry!_ " Frisk said, running to the pillar and pushing it over.

The pillar toppled onto an unsuspecting Toriel, who was crushed instantly. Frisk's ears rang, and they stared at the pile of concrete. "M-m-mom?" The Sentinel choked, his shoulders shaking in grief. "No, no, no, _NO!_ " he raced to where Toriel had been crushed, quickly looking through the rubble. But all that was there was dust...

Togore fell to his knees, sobbing. Frisk felt an awful feeling rising in their stomach. They slowly walked past Togore, reaching for the door-

" _YOU..."_ Togore slowly lifted his head, his voice had never sounded as chilling or venomous. Frisk jumped when they saw that his left eye had turned into pure fire. The enraged monster gripped his spear and aimed...

 _CRRR-AAACK!_

A crack quickly formed on the roof, and the ruins began to shake. Togore looked up in curiosity, and Frisk took the opportunity to bolt out of the exit.

They ran through the final room, zig-zagging to avoid the rubble that began to fall. They broke through the last doors, leaping out onto the ground. Coughing, they turned around to see the towers of the ruins collapsing, sending dust and rubble everywhere. Frisk got up and ran to maintain a safe distance, and watched as the former fortress of the humans collapsed in on itself.

Frisk sighed, wiping a tear from their dirty face. Killing Toriel still hurt a little... and there were probably other smaller monsters that died in there too...

They turned around to leave, then heard sobbing. Frisk looked back at the ruins and saw Togore, staggering around the rubble that remained of his home. "...Mom?" He called out hopelessly, then buried his face in his hands.

Frisk was feeling worse and worse about this. They were destroying people they had once cared about.

But they _had_ to see what would happen next...

"Human..." Togore called out, looking around the collapsed castle. "...Hear me now...Hear my promise..." Togore's voice sounded as sincere and threatening as ever. "...As long as you and your psychotic flower friend are still alive... I'm going to hunt you." Togore's spear gleamed in the light, and for the first time, Frisk noticed that it was shaped like a stretched-out version of the delta rune.

"I'll do whatever I must, go through whatever is in my way... and when I have you? You'll regret all of it. Everything you've done." Togore slowly began walking out of the ruins. "You'll beg... you'll plead... you'll weep for an end to your misery. And once I've crushed every last part of you?" Togore drew in a breath, shaking in grief, pain, and absolute fury.

"Then... only then will I kill you."

Frisk raced away in fear, down to the West End beach. This was a mistake, they shouldn't have messed with Togore like this... they kept running until they ran into someone, and the two fell down.

Frisk rubbed their eyes, looking at whom they'd hit.

"WHAT HAPPENED?" A familiar voice asked. Frisk blinked, refocusing.

It was Papyrus.


	30. Scorched Earth Route- West End

"HELLO THERE, CITIZEN OF TE DEUM!" Papyrus told Frisk. "I SEE YOU ARE NEW TO THE WEST END BEACH!" He turned around, gesturing to the ocean. "BUT FEAR NOT! I, LIFEGUARD PAPYRUS, WILL SHOW YOU THE INS AND OUTS OF HAVING FUN AT THE BEACH!"

Papyrus looked behind Frisk and frowned. "SAY... WASN'T THERE AN OLD CASTLE OVER THERE JUST A FEW MINUTES AGO?" Papyrus pointed behind Frisk, where the ruins had once stood. Once again, a knot of guilt formed in the child's stomach.

"NO MATTER!" Papyrus said, motioning for the child to follow as he walked down the beach. "WE SHALL ENJOY OURSELVES EVEN WITHOUT THE SCENERY OF A DUSTY OLD CASTLE!"

Frisk didn't want to follow Papyrus. They were afraid of what would happen if they did. Instead, Frisk headed towards the 'Suite Dreams' hotel, picking up pieces of gold on the way.

"WAIT! WHERE ARE YOU GOING?" Papyrus asked, following Frisk. "WAS IT SOMETHING I SAID?" Papyrus sighed, looking at the ground in disappointment. "WHY CAN'T I DO ANYTHING RIGHT?..." He asked himself, stopping to sit on a bench on the side of the road.

Frisk couldn't stand seeing their friend like this. They walked forward, but Flowey popped up and blocked the way.

"No, no, no!" Flowey said. "We can't have any of that worthless pity this time! If you become friends with everyone again, then you won't get to see what you came here for..." Flowey smirked, leaning forward. "... assuming that you _did_ come back to witness what I'm currently thinking of..." Frisk looked away from Flowey, and walked back to the hotel.

Frisk bought a room, and hurried inside to lay on the bed.

"Oh. Someone else is staying in this room. Sorry..."

Frisk sighed. They were in no mood for Napstablook's nonsense... They rolled over to ignore him.

"Did I disturb you? Oh no... this is probably going to be taken out of my paycheck..." Normally, Frisk wouldn't have minded Napstablook, but something was different. Ever since they had destroyed the ruins and killed almost everything in it, they had felt... like their level of violence had increased...

"Will you _shut up?!_ " Frisk saw a letter opener on the table, and instinctively grabbed it, slashing at where Napstablook's voice was coming from. The ghost's health seemed to drop.

"Whoops. I angered a customer. Oooooooooooooo..." Frisk continued slashing, ignoring the ghost's numerous apologies, until Frisk felt that all of Napstablook's health was gone.

"Hey... you know that you can't kill ghosts, right?" Napstablook finally appeared in front of Frisk. "I was just lowering my health to make you feel better. Sorry..." Frisk opened their mouth to yell at the ghost, then stopped, realizing that it was useless. Frisk flopped back onto the bed, listening to Napstablook say, "Ooooooooooooo..." as he left.

This time, a different dream awaited Frisk as they slept at the hotel. ' _Psst... Chara...'_ Frisk heard in their sleep. _'Asriel!'_ they shouted. _'Asriel, I've made a mistake! Please, help me get out...'_ Asriel seemed to either not hear Frisk, or was simply ignoring them. ' _I don't like this plan anymore, Chara... I don't think we can be able to do this!'_ Frisk felt themself open their eyes in the dream. They were standing in the middle of a path, and the stars above shed little light to see during this night. Asriel was nowhere to be seen, but Frisk could still sense he was there-

 _'Heya...'_ A familiar voice called out. _'...so you and Chara are really going after the humans, huh A-Team?'_ Frisk felt their mouth open, but it was Asriel that was speaking. ' _We have to! Chara told me-' 'Don't listen to Chara.'_ The voice responded.

Frisk thought back to the story of Asriel merging his soul with the human's, and carrying his dead sibling back to the ruins. Frisk looked down to see that they were carrying a human child...

 _'Please... I don't want to hurt you...'_ Asriel pleaded.

 _'But you know you're making the wrong decision, A-Team.'_ A blue light appeared, and drew closer. Frisk couldn't exactly make it out, but the light looked like an eye-

 _'You know you're not a murderer.'_ The glowing eye was close enough to see whom it belonged to.

Sans.

 _'And if you're going to listen to the little freak that you let into your head? Well...'_ He snapped his fingers, and Frisk felt their soul turn blue.

 _'...you and me... we're gonna' have a bad time...'_

Frisk lurched forward, gasping as they woke up.

"Hey... it's me again." Frisk saw Napstablook floating in their doorway. "It's part of my job to report dangerous actions, so I just called up the royal guard." Frisk's eyes widened, and they rolled out of bed, dashing into the hallway. "Sorry, but I let you sleep first, so you wouldn't be tired when they came after you. Bye."

Frisk ran out of the hotel to the beach, which was just beginning to light up with the dawn sky...


	31. Scorched Earth Route- West End II

The beach seemed pretty quiet, no monsters had gotten up early to take in the scenery of the rising sun. The vast ocean reflected the shades of orange, purple, and blue that had began to form with the start of the day. All in all, it was definitely _not_ a place that looked ominous of what lay ahead for Frisk.

They took a break from running, and put their hands on their head to make breathing easier. Frisk looked behind them, seeing nothing but sand and water. They turned around, flailing in surprise and falling down when someone appeared in front of them.

"I guess you could say we're in a _humerus_ situation." Sans chuckled. "Normally, I'd ask why you were running, but my brother, Papyrus, woke me up early this morning to tell me that there's an unhinged human on the loose. So..." he leaned in closer. "...are you as crazy as they say?"

Frisk shook their head, too scared to speak.

"Well, I hope not. You're about to deal with someone who isn't quite as... how should I put this... 'overlooking' as I am." The minute Sans finished talking, Frisk heard the all-too-familiar clanking of metal.

"YOU! HUMAN!" It was Undyne. The captain of the royal guard brandished her spear, screaming, "I'm going to RIP YOUR ARMS OFF AND FEED THEM TO THE SHARKS!"

"Bye!" Sans said cheerfully, disappearing.

Frisk ran the other way, looking for anything on the ground they could use to defend themself. Seeing a sharp, broken seashell, they scooped it out of the sand, and put it in their pocket for later. Undyne charged forward, crashing through the incoming tide. "You're going to WISH you'd stayed in the underground!"

"Hey, kiddo!" Frisk felt something tangle around their leg, and looked down. Flowey had showed up again.

"Listen... since we're trying to create a murderous psychopath, you're going to need... a significant amount of XP to take him out when we're done." Flowey looked over at Undyne. "I guess you might as well kill her, she's not going to hesitate on killing you..." Frisk stopped running, and caught their breath.

Undyne caught up, stomping her foot in anger. "What are you doing?! Turn around and fight-"

Frisk let the violence they had accrued channel into their decision-making, and quickly slashed at Undyne with the seashell. It was a perfect hit, the shell had cut right through the proud royal guard.

"Urgh... what..." Undyne shut her eyes and gritted her teeth. "...No... I'm not dying... not after one hit..." she fell forward, and Frisk watched as she began to scatter to dust.

Frisk sighed, and turned to walk away, then paused. They hadn't felt an increase in their level of violence, it was almost as if-

They looked back at Undyne. It was true, she had started to scatter apart.

But she hadn't finished.

"No..." Undyne said, more forcefully. "...I know what you're after. You're after the doom of our kind. All of us... we're going to die because of you..." the pile of dust stood up, vaguely making out a figure. "...but... I'm not leaving them... not until I've done everything I can to defeat YOU."

Frisk backed away as the dust began to collect together. "You... you're the one that the prophecy spoke of... you're the one who wants to tear apart all of our hopes and dreams." Undyne began reforming.

"But enough about you..." she said, forming into a more vicious, determined version of herself. "...it's time you found out about _me."_

Spears seemed to form from the air around Frisk, implaling them to the ground.

* * *

"But enough about you..." Frisk heard Undyne say again, then realized that they must've just died and came back. "...it's time you found out about _me._ "

Frisk took cover as the spears flew at them, running to a nearby sand dune. "You can't hide..." Undyne taunted, scanning the beach. "...my determination will lead me to you..." As if she could see right through the sand dune, Undyne hurled her spear at it, impaling the child through the head.

* * *

"But enough about you..." Frisk took off before Undyne could finish, staying out of the way of the spears that would form right in front of them. Frisk kept running, then took a quick look behind them to see how far away Undyne was. The minute they did, they felt something stab into their heart. They fell backwards, seeing a spear sticking out of their chest. Frisk must have run into a spear that had formed in the air.

* * *

"But enough about you..." Frisk tried attacking before Undyne finished, and watched as she staggered back from the blow. But it wasn't enough to kill her. Undyne regained her footing, and whacked Frisk over the head with her spear, sending the child rolling into the tide.

Frisk spat out the saltwater, and was greeted by a punch in the face. Then another, and another, and another...

Getting sick of losing, Frisk fought back like a wounded animal, slashing with the seashell whenever there was an opening. The two kept exchanging blows until Undyne knocked the seashell away.

"Now..." Undyne said, raising her spear. "...I can die in peace..."

A low growl caught Undyne's attention, and she stepped back. "Impossible!" She shouted at someone. "You should've died in the ruins!" "The human is mine..." a cool, focused voice responded. "Step aside, and I will let you go." Undyne laughed. "Let me go? We both know you're not the killing type." Frisk's vision was blurry, but they could make out the Sentinel standing a few yards away. "Times have changed..." he said, readying his spear. Undyne charged him, and they locked weapons.

Frisk tried crawling away, but they were too weak. All they could do was watch the battle unfold, and hope that the victor would kill Frisk quickly. Undyne was unrelenting, unleashing waves of spears at Togore. Togore roared in pain as one hit him in the shoulder, and looked at Undyne in fury. His left eye turned into a flame, just like it had in the ruins. _That must only happen when he's really, REALLY upset..._ Frisk thought.

The sun broke the horizon, shining a bright, orange light on the two combatants. Togore waved his hand, sending a wave of fire at Undyne. It hit her, and she flopped onto the sand. The Sentinel stabbed with his spear, and she rolled away to avoid it. Togore growled, kicking her side. The force lifted her off the ground, and she flew through the air. Undyne crashed on her side, and some of her armor splintered and shattered on impact. The shards of metal quickly vaporized into dust. Undyne got to her feet, and hurled her spear. Togore knocked it away, but she summoned another one, racing towards him for close combat.

Togore slashed and hacked with his spear, pushing Undyne further and further into the water. When they were about waist-deep, he grabbed her hair and shoved her face into the water, trying to drown her. Undyne punched him in the jaw, laughing. "You can't drown a fish!" She said, but her cockiness had given the Sentinel an opening. He plunged his spear into her gut, kicking her back onto the shore. Undyne hung on to her determination, weakly summoning several spears.

The Sentinel swiped at them with his spear, and they splintered apart. Undyne tried to get to her feet, but Togore kicked her down again. He quickly stabbed her again, the flame in his eye flickering.

Undyne gasped, and her spear fell out of her hand.

"Heh... you..." she coughed. It's you, isn't it? Not the... not the human, but you." Undyne started melting, looking up at the Sentinel. "What about me?" Togore asked, the flame changing back into a normal eye.

"The... the Malum-bringer..." Undyne whispered, then dispersed into dust for good.

Togore sighed, watching Undyne's dust get carried away by the water. "Greetings, human." He finally spoke, glancing over at Frisk. "Did you know that she was the one that scarred me?" He pointed to the scar that ran from the bottom of his chin to his left nostril. Frisk didn't really care about that. They had just seen him take out a determined, extremely powerful version of Undyne. He must've gotten a TON of XP...

"Whatever execution points she and the rest of the royal guard have given me..." _Wait... REST of the royal guard? He's already killed the rest of them?_

"...They will aid me in my vengeance. They tried to kill me before, and take my mother... so I guess it's more or less justified. But you?" Togore smiled darkly. "Heh... I can't see how killing you is NOT justified..." He stabbed his spear into the sand, glaring at Frisk.

"...Make your move..."


	32. Scorched Earth Route- West End III

Frisk weakly rose to their feet, coughing up sand. They stared at the Sentinel in fear, wondering how many guards he had killed. What was really bothering them was the possibility that Flowey was right, that deep down, Togore could be just as wicked as the flower thought he could.

Frisk looked around for their seashell, but the current must've swept it away. A sharp tip from one of Undyne's spears was left, so they scooped it up. Frisk took a step forward, gritting their teeth in pain. They tried again, and fell flat on their face.

"Pathetic..." Togore sighed, spinning his spear. "...I guess this means goodbye-" Togore drew his arm back to stab, but something caught his eye. Frisk looked to where he was looking at, seeing a crowd of monsters, their jaws hanging open in shock.

"Wait, wait wait..." Togore shook his hands. "...please, let me explain-"

"That monster was about to kill an injured child!"

"I think that's the monster that slaughtered the royal guard!"

"I saw him murder Undyne!"

"Hey, he kinda looks like Prince Asriel..."

Togore shook his head. "Please, I was just trying to defend myself-" The monsters looked in shock at what remained of Undyne's essence as it sank into the sand. "We need to stop him! He might kill someone else!" Frisk quietly walked away as Togore tried convincing the monsters that he was no danger. They had made it about fifty feet, when they felt a wave of heat hit their back, and screams of terror pierced the air.

Frisk turned around, and where the group of monsters had been, now there was a wall of fire. They were nowhere to be seen. _He... he killed them..._ Frisk thought in horror. _He killed all of them..._

"See?" Flowey popped out of the sand. "I told you... he's on his path to becoming one of us!" Frisk looked at Togore, who was looking at the flames in... wonder, awe. It unnerved Frisk that he didn't seem particularly regretful for killing a small army of citizens.

They ran, hoping that Togore was too occupied with his bonfire session to notice that they were gone. Frisk made it to the path to the castle, then heard the grass next to them rustle. They looked over, seeing someone...

"AAH!" A small monster leaped out of the grass, pinning Frisk to the ground. "You're under arrest, human! I'm going to hand you over to Undyne immediately!" Frisk sighed in relief, it was only the monster kid, who laughed.

"Hahaha hahaha! Yo, was that cool or what?" The monster kid looked eagerly at Frisk, who got to their feet. "Um... okay..." the monster kid seemed disappointed. "...hey, do you wanna look around and see if Undyne's around? Maybe we can-" "Undyne's dead." Frisk said plainly. They didn't feel like dealing with the monster kid's nonsense.

"D-d-dead?" The kid's jaw dropped. "Y-yo, you're lying! Undyne never loses!" The kid sniffed, trying to wipe their eyes. "Man, wish I had arms..." the kid sighed. "...if Undyne is... you know... then we need to get out of here. I know a safe place." The monster kid looked to the mountain, and Frisk groaned. This was going to be a long walk...

The kid shared some of his food with Frisk, who wasn't in the best condition. The fight with Undyne had taken storm lot out of them, and it was evident in their slight limp. They reached the statue on the side of the path, and Frisk looked at it, being drawn into a memory of their own...

Months after Asriel returned, he decided to go on a walk with Frisk. " _I didn't know they made a song for me..._ " he said, listening to the music box in the statue. " _It's not a bad song..."_ Asriel could only hold his smile for so long, before breaking down in remorse again. " _Frisk, why am I here? I don't deserve a song... or friends... or... or a happy life..._ " he looked away, embarrassed that he was crying. Frisk patted their sibling on the back. " _Asriel, you were brought back for a reason. I know you can make the best out of this._ " Frisk smiled at him, and Asriel calmed down. " _O-okay..."_ he wiped his tears away. " _Thanks, Frisk... I can always count on you for help..."_ Asriel frowned. " _Frisk?...Hey..._ "

"HEY!" Frisk snapped out of it, monster kid was standing where Asriel had been. A storm had started, drenching the two in rain. The monster kid was twisting his midsection, trying to point at something behind Frisk...

Frisk spun around as lighting flashed, revealing the Sentinel. His hair was hanging over his eyes, and he shook his head to clear his vision. "Child!" He shouted, looking directly at monster kid. "Get away from the human!"

The monster child stepped in front of Frisk. "You... you're the one who killed the royal guard! You..." he stopped. "...you must've killed Undyne..."

The Sentinel looked sadly at the child. "I'm doing what I have to... _please_ , listen to me. That human is a menace!" The monster child shook his head, standing between Togore and Frisk. "No! I won't let you kill anyone else!" The kid puffed out his chest. "Undyne never backed down from bad guys, and... and I won't either!"

Togore looked at the child in shock. "You think _I'm th_ e bad guy?!" Frisk backed away, looking for an opening to run. Togore growled, aiming his spear, but the monster child blocked his view. "You're not going to kill anyone else!"

Frisk felt terrible using monster kid as a shield, but they slowly backed away, out of the reach of Togore's spear...

 _SWOOSH!_

The human looked in horror as Togore sliced his spear through the monster kid's chest.

The kid shouted in pain, looking down at the wide slash through his shirt. Then his eyes rolled in the back of his head, and he began to fall backwards, dissolving in the wind of the storm.

Frisk felt their ears ringing, the world began to blur around them. _He murdered a child he murdered a child he murdered a child..._ That one sentence circled through Frisk's mind. Never, never would they think that Togore would do something so vile.

Togore hung his head, his sobs blending with the sound of the rain. "HUMAN!" He screamed, looking around for Frisk, but the storm clouds had made it too dark. "I'M GOING TO MAKE IT HURT! MORE THAN ANYTHING YOU COULD EVER IMAGINE!" He slowly staggered to the small pile of dust that was being dispersed in a puddle. He scooped up his spear, looking at it in dismay.

"Child..." he looked at the kid's essence, not lifting his head. "...forgive me..."

Frisk ran away, no one was safe from Togore now.

They circled around, racing to Undyne's House. No one was there, of course. Frisk locked all the doors, and drew the curtains.

"Howdy!" Frisk jumped when they heard Flowey. "Wow... I was expecting some twisted stuff, but a child-murderer?" Flowey laughed. "This is going better than I would've expected!"

Frisk walked over to the kitchen table, sitting on it and hiding their head. This was messed up, all of it. They had twisted a once respectable, kindhearted friend into a raging killer. They laid down, closing their eyes to sleep through this seemingly unreal world.


	33. Scorched Earth Route- West End IV

"Please! Please let me tell you-"

"Tell me what? Why you're trying to set a serial murderer loose on the island?"

Sans swept his hand to the right, and Frisk's body followed its movements. They slammed against the wall, and Sans held them there. "Why are you doing this, kiddo?"

"There was nothing left for me..." Frisk gasped. "...My 'happy ending' was destroyed." Sans laughed sarcastically. "Well, if you didn't have anything left up here, why didn't you go join your human pals downstairs?"

"You don't need to know why..." Frisk responded, struggling to break free. Sans stepped forward, snapping his fingers. A large bone appeared, aiming directly at Frisk's head. "Really? Maybe I don't need to be told... but it sure seems like you need to tell me."

Frisk closed their eyes, speaking slowly.

"There are no humans left. None but me."

 **Twenty Minutes Earlier...**

Rolling over, Frisk rubbed their eyes, not one bit ready to start the day. They hopped off the table, looking through Undyne's cabinets to see what food she had left. They saw a jar of noodles, and reached up for it.

"Be careful. You might hurt your _noodle._ " a voice said. Frisk sighed, knowing it was Sans. They took the jar, opening it up and walking to the table. "Well, that's just plain rude." Sans remarked, pulling up a chair and sitting down. He set his fedora on the table and looked at Frisk. "Now, would you mind telling me why you're pushing that guy from the ruins to insanity?"

Frisk didn't answer, and focused on eating.

"Silent type, huh?" Sans chuckled. "Okay. How about I ask a different way?" Sans winked, and a bone flew through the air, flying into the jar and shattering it to pieces. "SANS!" Frisk groaned in irritation, making Sans raise an eyebrow. "I've never told you my name..."

Frisk rolled their eyes, looking through the cabinets for something else. "Kid, come on..." Sans shrugged. "...it's obvious that you know me, so just tell me why, and this conversation will be over." This talk was annoying Frisk, they just wanted to finish what they'd started and get away. They hated doing this.

"I'm doing this... because it's supposed to happen." Frisk took down a jar of sauce, and went back to the table. "Oh. This is supposed to happen, huh?" Sans laughed. "What kind of an excuse is that?" Frisk looked up. "The prophecy. I'm here to see what happens, then I'll go."

Sans propped his sandaled feet on the table. "The prophecy of Malum, huh?" He sighed. "You know, it's just a vision of a timeline, it's not really a prophecy." He looked at the window. "It doesn't _have_ to happen."

"A lot of things didn't have to happen." Frisk said, opening the jar of sauce. The sauce had dried out, making it inedible. Sans laughed. "How ex _sauce_ sting." He leaned back. "So, you want to see this prophecy go down... and you chose a dangerous boss monster from the ruins? Not a bad plan. Except..."

His eyes went dark, and his voice took on a deadly serious tone. "You used to be friends with me, didn't you?"

Frisk didn't look at him.

"That's right... you, me, probably Papyrus... and if we were all friends, that means you used to be at least a halfway decent person." He drummed his fingers. "So, what changed?" Frisk stood up to go to the door, then felt their soul turn blue. Sans held them in place.

"I'll ask again... what happened that made you want all your old friends to die?" Frisk looked over their shoulder. "It's none of your business-" "Not until yesterday it wasn't." Sans swiped his left hand up, and Frisk flew into the ceiling. "So... if you won't tell me what's going on, I guess I'm going to have to stop you, kid..." Sans let Frisk drop to the ground. "Don't worry... I won't kill you, and you _certainly_ aren't going to kill me. So... why don't you close your mouth, and let my fighting do the talking?"

 **Twenty Minutes Later...**

"Dead?" Sans asked in confusion. "You guys went extinct?"

Frisk nodded. "When Asgore banished us underground, he didn't... he didn't know why there was an underground in the first place." Sans let Frisk go, and the child dropped to the floor. "When monsters and humans lived together, there was this... thing... and it was evil, horribly evil." Frisk sat against the wall. "The danger it posed caused humans and monsters to work together, defeating it. Once they had beaten the thing, they hollowed out a cavern under this island to keep it away from the surface." Frisk looked at Sans. "The original purpose of the ruins was to serve as a castle to keep it contained."

Sans nodded. "So... why does that thing have anything to do with you setting the prophecy into motion?"

"It had been killing humans for a long time... but it began decimating them not too long ago." The child looked up at the ceiling. "Once I realized there was nothing left underground, I came up here." Sans shrugged. "You're still not telling me why you made a new timeline."

Frisk sighed sadly. "The thing escaped." Sans nodded. "And...?" "And it killed everything. Everyone I loved and cared about... my broth- best friend... killed it as he was dying." Frisk felt a tear crawl down their face. "There was nothing left for me. So, I decided to start the prophecy." Sans sat next to Frisk. "I mean, I was always curious as to why it never happened in my timeline. I thought that-"

Sans held up his hand. "Don't." He shook his head. "You... you're disgusting, you know that? You make a world... filled to the _brim_ with people who cared about you... and you decide to watch these same people get slaughtered again?"

"What do you know about power?" Frisk snapped, looking at Sans. "When have you ever lost people whom you cared about, knowing that there was still some story that could be told?" Frisk narrowed their eyes. "What I'm doing... it's the only way I have left to spend my time with them."

Sans gripped Frisk by the shirt collar, lifting them up and slamming them into the wall. "Don't you EVER talk to me about loss..."

"Oh, yeah. You and Asriel. Big whoop. You never told me what actually happened that day-" Sans threw Frisk across the room. " _I let him go! I fought him, but I was too lazy to convince my best friend not to go!_ "

Frisk rubbed their shoulder, it felt dislocated... They heard a weird noise, then looked up to see Sans... sobbing.

"Get out." He growled. "Just go away."

Frisk didn't argue. They walked out the door, right into Papyrus.

"OH MY GOSH! IT'S THE HUMAN!" Papyrus did a victory dance. "I'M FINALLY GOING TO CAPTURE THE NOTORIOUS HUMAN THAT ATTACKED A HOTEL EMPLOYEE!"

Sans's sobbing stopped, and Frisk looked back to see that he was gone. He probably didn't want Papyrus to see him cry...

"NOW, HUMAN... IT'S TIME FOR YOU TO-"

 _CRRRUUUUNCH!_

The human screamed as Papyrus was cut by a spear stabbing through his chest.

"OH... THAT LOOKS... MOSTLY FATAL..." The spear was pulled out of Papyrus, and the lifeguard fell to his knees.

"S-SANS? SANS, ARE YOU THERE...?" Papyrus looked around desperately for help, only getting a response of, " _No one's coming for you..."_

Papyrus was kicked onto his chest, and he coughed in pain. "SANS?! SANS... PLEASE HELP..."

Papyrus's essence scattered, and Togore Dreemurr walked through it as the wind carried it away.

"Greetings, human..." he smirked, pointing his spear. "...we have some catching up to do..."


	34. Scorched Earth Route- West End V

"Fancy meeting you here..." Togore remarked, looking around the landscape. "I've been on a streak of about thirty kills..."

 _Whoa, thirty?! Calm down, dude..._

Togore smiled at Frisk's expression. "Yeah, I'm on a roll. The locals keep trying to kill me... so I keep having to kill them..." The Sentinel shrugged his shoulders. "...honestly, it's getting easier to kill. And all the execution points I've earned will REALLY come in handy when I kill you..."

Frisk ducked as Togore swiped his spear, and the blade got lodged in Undyne's doorframe. Togore grumbled and started pulling at it, and Frisk took this opportunity to run for their life. Again.

 _Faster... faster... FASTER!_ They told themself, splashing through the puddles left by last night's monsoon. A roar, louder than a lion's, came from behind Frisk, and they knew that Togore was closing in.

Togore continued pursuing Frisk, herding them away from the volcano, and back towards the beachside hotels. Frisk made it into the streets, getting curious looks from several monsters. The monsters were even more shocked when they saw the Sentinel charging down the street after Frisk. Frisk turned a corner, and ran into the Sandbar. They made sure to lock the doors, and then hid under a table.

A shout of frustration came from behind the door, and flames licked underneath it. After a few minutes, Frisk decided that Togore must have left.

"I-is this a robbery?" A monster asked Frisk, looking fearfully at the child. Frisk was about to leave, when they saw something in the corner of the room.

Flowey.

"You know what to do..." he hissed. "...do you really think you can save yourself with the LV you have now?"

Frisk shuddered, looking around at all the terrified monsters. They didn't want to do this... it went against all of their instincts... but it was the only way to bring about the prophecy. Frisk reached over the counter, grabbing a steak knife.

Several minutes later, Frisk staggered out of the Sandbar, covered in dust. Their eyes were wide with terror, and their heart was filled with remorse.

Flowey popped up in front of Frisk, nodding approvingly. "Good job. You did what you had to so that this timeline can end the way it's supposed to." Flowey looked across the empty street. "To be honest, this is... progressing... rather quickly... but that doesn't matter." Flowey flashed a devilish grin. "He'll realize the magnitude of what he's done, and then?..." Flowey looked up at Frisk. "...well, who would want to live with _that_ on their conscience?"

Frisk left Flowey, walking back down the road. Along the way, they saw numerous piles of essence. Apparently the Sentinel was taking every opportunity to increase his LV. Frisk picked up the pace, worried that he would pop out at any minute...

 _This was a mistake..._ Frisk thought. _I never should have driven Togore to kill..._

Mistake or not, Frisk knew it was on their shoulders. It was going to be up to them to make sure it ended the way it was supposed to.

Frisk hiked up the mountain path, not seeing the Sentinel anywhere. It was odd, he usually would pop up after this much time had passed. They made it to the door in the mountainside, slowly opening it.

 _Maybe he's dead..._ Frisk thought hopefully. _Maybe Flowey was right, and he killed hims-_

Frisk stopped their thoughts. Even though Togore was now the enemy, they didn't want to think of their old friend drowning in that much despair.

As the door creaked open, Frisk could hear footsteps... distinctly metallic, possibly armor. They raised their knife, bracing themselves for the Sentinel to attack...

A foot kicked Frisk in the gut, sending them flying back. They groaned in pain, leaning up, and got kicked again.

Frisk got to their feet, and slashed with their knife. "OUCH!" A voice shouted, as shards of metal and sparks flew everywhere. Frisk took a good look at their attacker, realizing that it was-

"Well, you've got moves, darling..." Mettaton said smoothly. He was in his Ex form. "...but they're dull compared to _mine..._ " He kicked Frisk in the face, and the human fell on their back, unconscious.

 **Back at Undyne's** **house...**

The monster slowly approached the abandoned house they had attacked the human at earlier. It was fish-shaped, with a door in place of the mouth.

The monster peeked inside, looking at the wreckage. Almost all of the walls had a human-sized dent in them, and there were bones sticking out of the floor, ceiling, and walls. They reached their hand forward, feeling the gash in the doorway. If the owner was still alive, she would've had one nightmare of a restoration project on her hands.

But none of that could compare to what the monster felt like, deep in his soul. They took a knee, brushing their hand across the essence of a monster in front of the house. There was something else there, too... a sleeveless tee, like one that lifeguards would wear.

"Papyrus..." the monster choked, a tear falling from his face. "...I'm sorry. I'm sorry for being so... worthless... as to let this happen to you..." he slowly began to sit down, in absolute misery.

The human would pay. Soon. But before that, this monster needed to avenge the only true family they'd ever had...

"Sentinel..." Sans growled, his eye glowing a piercing light blue. "...revenge isn't even going to come _close_ to describing what I'm gonna do to you..."


	35. Sans- Memory

_Sans stood in the castle hall, pondering on the events of the research today. There seemed to be no way to trace these 'timelines' that they had found, no way to see how there were more ways this world could exist... to make it worse, Sans wasn't sure if he really wanted to find out._

 _*Tap*_

 _Sans's head perked up at the noise, but he saw nothing. He went back to his thoughts... would it be worth it to discover these timelines? Even worse, a growing feeling was telling Sans that nothing was really worth it... The many timelines meant many possibilities, many different events... would it matter if he did anything now?_

 _"No..." he told himself. "...you're too young to be acting lazy." Sans had turned sixteen the other week, and was the youngest assistant Royal Scientist in history. If that wasn't enough, Asgore had him guard the halls of the castle from time to time._

 _*Tap*_

 _Sans looked in the direction of the noise, seeing a small monster in a striped shirt. Sans walked behind the monster, knowing that he couldn't take any chances with this job... he tapped the opposite shoulder of the monster, making him look in that direction._

 _"Heya." Sans said, making the monster jump. "So... you mind telling me why you're here?"_

 _The monster backed up, stuttering. "I... I...I'm trying to, uh... find the king..."_

 _Sans's mental alarms went off, he didn't know this kid, why was he searching for the king? Sans quickly judged the child, it seemed he was LV 1, no execution points. But one could always change their mind..._

 _"Sorry, kid. But no one's supposed to be in this hall but me... so I'm afraid I can't let you pass."_

 _"Please, mister! I need to find my dad!" The monster stepped forward, as if trying to get by Sans. The skeleton let his left eye flash, warning him off. The monster, terrified, stumbled back and fell down. Sans raised his hand, ready to begin his attack, when something made him stop._

 _Sobbing._

 _"P-p-please... I didn't mean any harm, mister..." The small monster was crying and trembling with fear. "I'll go... I... I... I'm sorry if I did anything wrong..."_

 _Sam's began to lower his hand, and then realized that he had let his pupils go out, which was probably scaring the kid even more._

 _"Sans, how are things-" King Asgore had walked into the hall from the other end. "...Asriel?"_

 _The monster's terrified expression turned to joy. "Dad!" He shouted, and ran to Asgore's open arms._

 _"Sans, what happened here?" Asgore asked. "Asgore, I'm sorry... I thought this kid might not be good and I-I-" Sans felt terrible. He had horrified that poor kid. "Hey, kid... I'm so sorry. I really am-" he looked closer at the kid, and noticed that he looked almost exactly like his father._

 _"Oh! It's so obvious you're his kid! I should've listened... it was kind of, uh... 'boneheaded' of me."_

 _Asriel giggled, wiping away the last of his tears. Asgore smiled reassuringly at Sans. "Sans, it's okay. It was a simple misunderstanding. Now, as for YOU-" Asgore said, picking Asriel up and lifting him up high in the air. "-We're going to have mom's butterscotch pie!"_

 _"Yay! Pie!" Asriel cheered, then glanced back at Sans. "How come you're so calm, mister Sans?"_

 _"Well... because it's impossible to get under my skin." Sans winked at Asriel, who busted out laughing at the awful skeleton pun, and the king groaned, shaking his head at the joke. Sans chuckled and went back to work. "And you thought the small things didn't matter anymore..." he thought to himself._

Sans sighed sadly as this memory came to mind. Even though he had grown up in a world different from Asriel, he still felt like a big brother to the young prince. He had taught Asriel how to finish puzzles, crosswords, and how to pick up the girls that were obviously swooning over the prince. He leaned his head against the wall of Undyne's house, looking at Papyrus's essence. Yet another person close to Sans that could've been saved, had Sans not been so lazy and intervened in time.

Sans couldn't take it. He buried his head in his arms and broke down again, angry at the world for being cruel, angry at the human for pushing the Sentinel to insanity, and angry at the Sentinel himself for murdering his brother.

Sans swore he'd kill him, personally. With absolutely nothing left to lose, Sans stood up, and went to the castle.


	36. Scorched Earth Route- The Mountain

Frisk's eyes snapped open, awakening them to the back of a stage.

Frisk recognized this place, it was the MTT Stage. Frisk began to sit up from the chair they were in, but something was restraining them. They sighed as they felt ropes tied around their arms and waist, holding them in place.

"GOOD EVENING, My darlings..." Frisk heard Mettaton's voice. Lights flashed on, and Mettaton was already striking a pose, drawing a positive reaction from the crowd. Mettaton was in his Ex form, and seemed to be readying yet another show.

"...today, we have yet another VERY special guest... the human wanted for murder!" Mettaton announced, making the audience boo Frisk. Some of the monsters threw steaks in the shape of Mettaton's face at Frisk, others held up signs that... well... were not written with the most forgiving of intentions.

Mettaton gestured to the audience. "Tonight, dear spectators, YOU will be the ones to decide how I am to bring this MURDEROUS LUNATIC to justice!" The crowd cheered, chanting Mettaton's name. Frisk groaned in frustration and looked at the ground. As they did, Mettaton looked curiosity at the back door. "OH MY GOSH! Who might you be?" Frisk didn't care too much about who had just arrived, so they leaned back in their chair and tried to unite the ropes.

"Hmm... medieval, but... with a hint of dystopian? I absolutely ADORE your style!" Mettaton remarked, probably talking about the visitor. As Frisk was looking away, there was an awful tearing noise, sounding like metal being ripped apart. Something flew onto the stage, rolling next to Frisk's foot. It was Mettaton's head...

The audience began screaming, running to different corners of the room, but with no way out. Perhaps even more terrifying was how the shrieking got quieter, as if one by one, the monsters were being silenced. Frisk closed their eyes, and didn't open them until the screams were gone. A small monster hopped onto the stage, about to look for another exit, but a spear flew out of nowhere, killing it.

"Can't believe I almost let that little guy go!" A voice said cheerfully. For a moment, Frisk thought that it might be Flowey, but Flowey's voice would've been more high-pitched. "Wait, wait, wait..." The Sentinel emerged from the darkness. "...you weren't trying to finish my kill, were you?" He smirked. "Ha! Where's the fun in killing something that someone else almost killed?"

Togore picked up his spear, shaking the dust off of it. "If I'm going to have to kill them to stay alive..." he smiled at his reflection in the blade of the spear. "...then I might as well have some fun while I'm at it..."

"Fun?" Frisk snapped. They couldn't take Togore's increasing level of lunacy. "You think this is about having _fun?!_ "

Togore grinned and nodded. "Anyway, don't bother going back to the west end to bump up your level of violence..." he brandished his spear and smiled horribly. "...I made sure that no one that stayed there stayed alive." Frisk struggled, trying to free themself from the ropes.

Togore drew near, the tip of his spear pointing straight at Frisk's neck. "I would kill you now, but..." he shrugged. "...there's about fifty or so up ahead that I'd like to level up off of." He spun his spear, and walked towards the exit. "Bye." Frisk struggled more with the ropes, knowing that the plan had failed. Togore definitely wasn't going to take his own life out of despair, and Frisk couldn't think of anyone that could possibly stop him.

After a while, they got out of the ropes, and raced away from the stage. Togore had mentioned something about more up ahead, and Frisk knew someone who might know what he was talking about...

They punched in the code to Alphys's lab, and the door opened. "H-hey you!" Alphys was inside, backing away in fear. "Y-y-you're never going t-to find where the others are hiding!" Frisk walked inside. "Where are they? Tell me, they might be in danger-" "The only th-threat to them is y-y-you!" Alphys backed up more. Frisk shook their head. "You have to tell me where they are." Alphys shook her head.

"Th-th-they're in a p-place you can't f-find..." she said. _The Core..._ Frisk thought, then turned and headed out of the room. As they did, they heard an explosion, followed by a scream. They looked back into Alphys's lab, seeing a hole in the wall that seemed to lead to the core.

Alphys was nowhere to be seen.

Frisk ran through the hole, entering into the core. Togore had cornered W. D. Gaster, keeping his spear pointed at the scientist's head.

"Please, explain what the meaning of this is!" Gaster demanded. Togore laughed. "Just doing some... renovations... don't worry, you won't be around to see it..." Gaster crossed his arms. "You're an imbecile, you know that? Do you really think that I, _Dr. W. D. Gaster,_ would simply let you-"

Togore grabbed Gaster's throat, opening the device in the center of the core. He threw Gaster in, then shut the glass hatch over him. "Let me out! You filthy, ignorant fiend!" Gaster shouted, desperately trying to pry his way out. "Can't handle being the experiment, huh?" Togore chuckled, flipping a few switches. "I've got a taste for irony... let's see what this does."

Gaster froze as the core began to move his soul through the timelines. Togore frowned, and flipped some more switches, until Gaster... well... it wasn't clear exactly what happened, but it seemed like the scientist shattered apart.

Togore grinned, turning off the core. He turned around, seeing Frisk, and his eyes seemed to light up with a villainous joy.

"What's happening, pal?" Togore rested his spear on his shoulder. "Man, those civilians had NO IDEA what was heading their way!" His grin widened, and he brushed some of his hair back. "Hahaha! They were all screaming! And crying!" Frisk backed up as Togore began to pace forward. "Mothers were hiding their children... they gathered all the weak and sickly into a hidden place..." he shrugged. "...it was SO much easier to kill them, they were all trapped!"

Togore threw his head back and laughed. "I've never seen anyone so scared in my life! Anyways, it's been a heck of a ride..." he gripped his spear, bloodlust seeming to radiate from his eyes. "...but this is where it ends for you-" He leaped through the air, one hand drawing his spear back, the other holding a fire ball. "-For EVERYONE!"

Frisk jumped back as the Sentinel slammed both his hands on the ground. The spear sliced through the metallic flooring, and the fireball turned into a wave of fire. Frisk jumped over the fire, then ducked as the spear sliced the air above them. Togore pushed Frisk closer and closer to the door to the Magma Stabilizer room, slashing and stabbing like a madman. Frisk quickly ran into the room, maintaining a safe distance from Togore.

The Sentinel laughed. "I've won. Goodbye, human..." with all of his might, he hurled his spear. Frisk barely dodged it, feeling a gust of wind as the spear flew past them. They smirked at Togore, thinking that he had just missed an opportunity, but the Sentinel gave a dark laugh. Frisk frowned, looking at the spear.

It was embedded in one of the magma stabilizing machines.

"Well..." Togore walked past the human and ripped his spear out of the machine, which began to sound an alarm. "...like I said, I won." He shot a fireball at the wall, racing out of it to find a hiding spot.

The mountain began to shake, and magma slowly leaked from the pipes that had been keeping it depressurized for years. Frisk got up, slowly backing out of the room. They started to run towards wherever Togore was heading to, then realized that was pretty much asking for a painful death. They turned around, heading towards the core. Hopefully that would be safe enough...

Frisk slammed the door shut as the room began to heat up. Sweat poured down their face, and the floor burned their feet. They slowly staggered towards the center of the room, but the mountain shook more, knocking them off their feet.

Frisk cried in agony as the floor burned their arm and hair, and the lights shattered and went out. The child who, so long ago, rose to the surface in bravery and determination, now cowered in absolute terror and pain as the world around them exploded and burned.


	37. Scorched Earth Route- The Mountain II

_Pain._

That one small little word carried so much weight as Frisk's eyes weakly opened. The core had melted in the heat of the eruption, the metal walls caving downwards, and had cooled. The room now looked like a dome.

Frisk lifted their arms, and caught a glimpse of the burns on the underside of them. They looked away, gagging at the vision that was now stuck in their mind.

Getting to their feet, Frisk headed out through a hole in the wall, the one Togore had left. With every step, they could feel a pain in their feet rising, bringing them closer and closer to death's doorstep. The trail ended at the MTT Stage, which was surprisingly untouched. _That's why he cleared it out._ Frisk thought grimly. _He didn't want anyone hiding in there._

Frisk walked onto the stage, which was littered with the face steaks that the audience had hurled before being slaughtered. Frisk hungrily grabbed one, tearing at it with their teeth. As they ate, they felt the burns going away... The pain in their sides fading...

 _Why am I alive?_ Frisk wondered. If the heat was enough to melt the core, why didn't it melt Frisk?

 _De... termin... ation?_ That seemed to be the answer to everything now.

Once they were healed up, Frisk meandered around, taking in the destruction on the inside of the volcano. But that didn't compare to what Frisk saw once they got outside.

The child's jaw dropped as they surveyed the once green, lush scenery. It was now burnt to a crisp, pillars of smoke rising from the remains of the fields. Ashes, sparks, and dust seemed to clog the air, making breathing a pain. Frisk looked up at the sky, which was covered in darkness. The volcano, although it had quit spewing out lava, was now pumping the sky full of ash and smoke. Here and there, small pools of lava had collected, bubbling and spreading over the ground. Frisk looked to the west end, which had not been spared. Sans's hotels had been obliterated, their rubble and framework scattered across the beach. Even the beach itself wasn't recognizable, the bright, yellow sand had been covered in dark ashes.

As Frisk surveyed the devastation, the only thing that came to mind was that this was all their fault.

Frisk walked along the mountainside, and they noticed that the small houses that were on its slopes had also been levelled. Most of them, anyway. Frisk saw one that seemed relatively intact, then watched as it burst into flames, and Togore walked out of it.

 _He's destroying everything... monsters... houses..._

Frisk slowly followed as Togore incinerated the remaining houses, which usually had an unfortunate monster hiding inside. Some ashes by their feet moved, and Flowey slowly rose from them.

"This..." Flowey paused. "...I've never been able to do anything like this..." Flowey looked up at Frisk."We went too far! He's destroying everyone and everything! I was trying to twist someone to their breaking point, not destroy everything!"

Frisk watched as Togore continued decimating the village. "You have to rewrite! This can't go on anymore!" Flowey begged, but Frisk didn't listen. They were too distracted by the place the Sentinel was going to next.

The hat shop.

"What are you doing? Don't be an idiot!" Flowey growled. "Please... let's just go back to fighting over a happy ending!" Frisk ignored Flowey's plea, they had to see what would happen. They _had_ to.

Togore shot a fireball through the door, and did a double take when he saw someone inside. " _You made it?_ " he laughed. "Who even _are_ you?"

Amabilia's sweet, soft voice now rang out in terror: "Please, I have nothing to do with you-" "Shut up." Togore growled in response, walking inside. Frisk slowly hid behind a large boulder that the volcano had shot out, and watched as the Sentinel dragged Ama out and threw her to the ground. He turned back to the hat shop, and swiped his hand. Fire flew from it, and consumed Ama's store.

Ama started to get up, but Togore put his foot on her back, pinning her to the ground. "Stay where you are..." he warned. "...or this will just get more FUN for me..." Frisk's stomach twisted into a knot. "...and more HORRIFYING for you!"

Ama looked up at Togore, and Frisk couldn't help but remember when the two were in love, and Togore would've done anything for her.

"You... don't you care how horribly those... those innocent monsters... how they must've died?" Ama asked, to which Togore responded by laughing. "I don't CARE about HOW I get the kill... I just care about getting the kill!" He watched as the store started collapsing. "Why not do something if you're good at it? I'm great at killing! I'm creative with it!" Togore grinned, then continued to boast. "I mean, didn't you see that volcano go off? That was me!" Ama looked at him, horrified.

"And I got all the execution points from those who died in the eruption!" He cackled. _Oh, no..._ Frisk remembered what Flowey had said about indirect killing. Togore probably killed all the monsters left on Te Deum besides the ones at this village. His level of violence was probably at an unprecedented amount...

Ama shuddered, then her eyes looked at Togore. "Togore..." she said, her eyes having the glow they had during her 'episode' the first time the two met. "...you're alive... why..." she blinked. "...The armoured guardian... Malum-bringer... oh, no, Togore!"

She leaped up, grabbing his arms. "Togore, this isn't you! I know you! I..." her voice softened. "...I love you. I know that right now, you might not have a shred of dignity in you... I know that it seems that you can't go back..." she held on to him. "...but I know that there's still a way! Don't you remember, too?"

Her eyes searched his for any sign of the monster from another timeline. "Just... come back with me, and we can forget this... give up this... massacre... and come back." Her eyes watered. "I'll always take you back, I promise. Please, Togore. _Please._ "

Togore's head lowered, staring at the ground. His brow was furrowed in thought. His arm lowered, the tip of the spear touching the ground.

Frisk gasped. For the first time, Togore was relenting. Was her love for him _that_ strong? That it could cross a timeline, due to her experience in the core, and bring back the Malum-bringer from the darkest pit his mind had gone to?

"You know... you..." His eyes met hers, having a soft glow to them. "...you're right." Togore rested his hand on her shoulder, and Frisk sighed in relief. This nightmare was over.

"..." Togore made no sound, staring into her eyes.

 _SWOOSH!_

Frisk screamed as Togore's spear ripped through Ama, who choked, staring at him.

Togore gripped Ama's neck as she looked at him in horror."...There's not a single shred of dignity in me. And there's not an ounce of remorse in me." He twisted the spear. "No feeling when I look at you, at what i just did to you... and you know what?" His eyes sparkled with malice, fury, and nearly every other fearful and detestable quality of a corrupted soul.

"I like it."

He ripped the spear out, and let go of Ama. She collapsed onto his feet, her back shaking with her unsteady breath. She looked up at him, crying, broken, and dying.

But still, she didn't let him go. She rested her head on his foot, clinging to his ankle.

Then she vaporized into dust.

Togore chuckled, walking through her dust, and Frisk watched in shock as he headed to the castle.


	38. Scorched Earth Route- The Castle

The gates to the castle were heavily damaged. Boulders launched from the volcano had smashed them off their hinges, and the lava flow had scorched them. Frisk walked across the toppled gates, and onwards to the castle.

The castle itself had actually avoided the eruption, looking as pristine as ever. Well, except for the hole burned through the doors to the main hallway. Togore had already made it, and it was more than likely that he was currently beating poor Asgore to a pulp.

Frisk walked through the hole, looking at the stain glass windows they had walked past so long ago. They looked exactly the way they always had.

A cold, clenching feeling wrapped around Frisk's neck, lifting them off their feet. They gasped, trying to pull it away.

"Y'know... " a voice from behind them said. "...I was gonna save you for later, but I guess now will have to do..." Frisk was turned towards the person choking them from behind, a short monster wearing a short-sleeve button down shirt, khakis, sandals, and a tan fedora. But the monster's most striking feature was his left eye, glowing bright blue...

"...you did this." Sans spat. "You twisted him until he snapped, and it cost me my brother." Sans's fingers began closing, attempting to crush Frisk's trachea. "You're every bit the monster that the Sentinel is..."

"HUMAN!" A cold, chilling voice roared. Sans looked behind Frisk, and his hand opened. Frisk dropped to the ground, gasping for air. Frisk looked up, seeing Sans stagger back.

"How nice of you to wait for me!" Togore Dreemurr snickered, swiping his spear around. The weapon slashed through a window, shattering it apart. "It took me a while to clean out that makeshift hospital in the east tower..." he grinned, smashing another window. "...there were a TON of burn victims, and this is pretty much the only place untouched by the lava flows."

Frisk's throat still hurt, so they couldn't really interrupt Togore, and he continued speaking. "They took all their wounded and dying there, I bet they thought that they'd finally hit a stroke of good luck." The Sentinel's smile widened, and he surveyed the devastation out one of the shattered windows.

"And then I charged in and tore them all to pieces!" Togore threw back his head and laughed insanely. Frisk shook their head in shock. He had truly lost it.

"I can still see them... hear them..." he looked off, as if listening to something. "...begging... pleading..." Frisk felt an awful feeling climbing up their throat. "... _weeping_... for mercy..." Togore aimed his spear at Frisk. "Just like you're about to be!"

"Can it, weirdo." Sans said, stepping in front of Frisk. Togore laughed, his voice mocking and taunting. "You? Who are you?"

"Who am I? Well..." Sans shrugged . "...I'm Sans. Sans the skeleton."

Togore paused, a sly smile crawling onto his face. "Oh yeah..." he nodded. "You were the brother of that sorry excuse of a lifeguard!"

Sans's eyes went dark, stunned as Togore laughed. "What a funny coincidence!" Togore stepped closer, his hair falling across his brow. Instead of fixing his hair like he used to, Togore let it hang down. Sans's shoulders slouched, and his head hung. Frisk watched as a tear trickled out of his eye socket.

"Hey, Sans... cheer up, buddy..." Togore smiled. "...I made his death worth my while." Togore nodded as Sans continued looking at the ground in despair. "I stabbed him, slowly... and I made sure it was in one hit." He smirked. "One sharp, painful hit."

Sans shuddered, not looking up at the villainous monster. "But do you know what was special about your brother?" Togore continued, "He didn't beg for death, as he choked out his last words. He didn't try to reason with me." Togore looked at Sans. "The only thing he could scream was, 'Help me!'"

"'Help me, Sans!'"

A sob made its way out of Sans's throat, and Togore chuckled in amusement. "Hahaha... what a coward..."

Sans swiped his left arm, and Togore was thrown through a window like a rag doll.

Frisk's jaw dropped, and they slowly looked over to Sans as he raised his head.

"Welp... I've got a bratty brother-killer to deal with. But once I'm done..." Sans's eye flashed at Frisk. "...you're due for a bad time."

Sans walked outside the castle, heading to finish off the Sentinel.

 _Great. Just great._ Frisk sighed. _I'm going to have to fight Sans. SANS._

Frisk had heard rumors of Sans's combat ability, and had felt it themselves during their brief scuffle at Undyne's House. Sans was going to crush Togore, and then go after Frisk.

Frisk stepped through a broken window, and saw a Togore-shaped hole in a tower. The human walked inside, wanting to see this fight for themselves.

The tower had a spiral staircase, and Frisk could hear Togore roaring in anger, and huge blasts of energy. The tower shook, and the staircase began collapsing.

Frisk grabbed onto the side rail, and the stairs beneath them collapsed. They looked out the window and saw one of the towers catch on fire, bones and lazers shooting out of it.

Frisk was able to climb down, but when they reached the bottom of the tower, something was thrown through the wall and almost hit them. It was Togore. The Sentinel ignored Frisk, and gave an angry roar. He leaped into the air, crashing into one of the other towers.

Frisk continued following as the battle shook the castle. Windows would shatter, walls and towers would fall, and all the while Frisk had to dodge the bones and fire flying everywhere to avoid becoming collateral damage. Finally, they caught up to them.

The Sentinel was spinning and stabbing, fighting more intensely than Frisk had ever seen them. But with every move they made, Sans would dodge, disappearing and reappearing behind Togore. Sans snapped his fingers, and a bone shot up from the ground, hitting Togore in the jaw and sending him flying into a chandelier.

Sans raised his left hand, and Frisk saw Togore's soul turn blue. Sans slammed his hand down, and Togore flew down, slamming into the ground. Sans slammed him to the right, then the left, then into the ceiling, then threw him out the window.

The skeleton wiped his brow, sweating, but then had to teleport when Togore flew back through the window, slamming his fist on the ground. A wave of fire erupted from around the Sentinel, throwing Frisk against the wall. Togore snarled and knocked down a wall with his spear, searching for Sans.

Frisk had never seen a fight like this. Togore seemed unstoppable, but Sans was untouchable. The whole castle was unrecognizable, now looking more like the ruins.

Frisk heard a crash, and looked up to the highest tower. They saw a tiny speck (probably Togore) get thrown out, and it flew into a tower that was halfway destroyed. Then more fighting noises came from the tower, bones and fire pouring out of it like water from a broken pipe.

Frisk headed up the tower, Sans was probably going to be tired out when he was done, and Frisk would have to strike then. They walked up the tower with ease, stepping across the stairs, silence the only noise- _Wait, WHAT?_

There was no sound, no noise.

Sans must've finished.

Frisk sighed in relief, knowing that Togore was finally dead. But as they did, an equal feeling of guilt rose. _He wasn't always a maniac..._ Frisk thought. _...He... he used to be a good person... The whole island looked up to him after he saved Asriel.._

Frisk pondered on that as they headed up the tower. How were they ever going to look at Togore the same way again... how they would rewrite... how they should kill Sans...

 _Do I have to kill him?_ Frisk thought. If Togore was dead, there was no use in levelling up. They could just... rewrite...

They reached the top of the tower, which had no roof. Rubble was scattered everywhere, and the ash from the eruption was still making it too dark to see very far.

"Heya." Sans's voice gasped, obviously worn out from his fight. Frisk got out their knife, they could just barely make out Sans. He was sitting down, leaning against a pillar...

They continued walking forward, not knowing why. They didn't have to kill him, what was pushing them? Frisk debated on going back, then almost slipped in something. They looked down, seeing blood splattered all over the ground.

Frisk frowned. Were they wounded? They checked themselves for any wounds, but didn't see any. Monsters didn't bleed. _Well, all except for-_

"No..." Frisk moaned in horror, running towards Sans. "...no, no, no, no..."

Sans had a huge gash in his chest, and blood was pouring out of it.

Togore had won.


	39. Scorched Earth Route- The Castle II

Frisk could remember the last time Sans died. It was after the thing from the underground had escaped, and began slaughtering the inhabitants of Te Deum.

Sans had gone after it with Papyrus, and failed. Frisk made it just in time to see Sans bleeding out, and watched as he died. They had never felt so lost or hopeless.

But this was so, _so_ much worse. Sans had been the only thing standing between Togore and Frisk's annihilation, and now he was almost dead.

Frisk kneeled down, looking at Sans. The skeleton's arms hung loosely by his side, and the gash in his shirt was still bleeding.

"Huh..." he looked at Frisk. "...just who I wanted to see." Sans coughed, then wiped his mouth.

"Asgore's soul..." he gasped. "...it might not have broken yet." He leaned forward. "If there's even an ounce of remorse in you, you'll merge that thing with your soul and take that lunatic out."

Sans coughed again, looking out across the barren, burning wasteland that was Te Deum.

"Beautiful day outside..." he said, chuckling.

Frisk looked away, then heard him turn to dust.

As Frisk slowly walked back down to look for Asgore's soul, they felt like crying. Nothing good had come out of this, it was all wrong. Awfully wrong...

Frisk decided that this had been enough. It was time to rewrite this story. They were never, _ever_ doing anything like this again.

Frisk waited, looking around as they felt the determination surge through them.

Nothing happened.

Frisk panicked, remembering what happened in the last timeline. They hadn't been able to rewrite until the thing that had killed everyone was dead. They tried rewriting again.

Nothing happened.

Fear rose inside the child. They were not as determined to rewrite as Togore was to erase. They were going to have to fight him themself.

They quietly made it to the throne room, which looked more like an ancient crypt now. The flowers were scorched, their golden shine burnt to a dark, ashy dullness. The walls were burned, and debris and rubble was scattered everywhere.

But, among all this despair, there was a small glimmer of hope. Frisk saw something small shining among the burnt rubble, and ran over to it. It was some sort of broken... rock? Diamond? They had no idea, but it was glowing...

As soon as Frisk touched it, it flew into their chest, being absorbed by the human's soul. Frisk instantly felt the determination of not only a monster... but also that of another human...

 _What is this?_ Frisk heard in their mind. _What's going on?_ Frisk sighed, thinking that they must be talking to themself.

"Chara!" Frisk turned around and saw Flowey. "Chara, listen to me!"

 _I'm all ears..._ Frisk heard in their mind. _Wait, I'm not Chara..._

"We went too far this time! He's too powerful to be stopped!" Flowey looked at Frisk, terrified. "Chara, you have to rewrite!"

"I can't." Frisk replied.

"Chara, please..." a loud footstep echoed through the throne room. "...he's coming." Flowey whispered.

Frisk looked at Flowey. There was no other way to tell him that there was nothing they could do.

"Chara, come on! S-stop messing around!" Flowey put on a frustrated face, but it did little to hide the fear in his eyes.

Another footstep sounded.

Flowey panicked. "If you... if you can't do anything, then... just kill me, before he hears us... it'll be better if you do it-"

Another footstep, this one closer.

"Chara... it's me!" Flowey's face twisted, until it resembled Asriel's face. "Your best friend in the whole wide world! We'd do anything to help each other! Even if it means... that you have to..."

The footsteps drew nearer, until the faint outline of a monster could be seen directly behind Flowey.

"Please!" Flowey begged, tears of sheer terror dropping from his eyes.

"P-please kill me..."

A bloody hand stretched out of the darkness, and Flowey's petals slowly began to burn. Frisk watched, all of their senses numb, as the flower screeched and writhed in agony. His withered petals burned until they were gone.

Finally, a spear flashed, slicing the flower in half. The outstretched hand closed, and Flowey quickly burned to ash.

"Well, that was amusing!" Togore stepped out of the darkness. "That sorry bag of bones put up one heck of a fight!"

Frisk recoiled at the sight of him. Togore's normally groomed, blonde hair was now as unkempt as it could be, hanging over his nose and eyes. His mouth was spread in a horrible grin, all his teeth bared. But the worst part was his face, splattered with blood. Frisk had an awful feeling about what-or rather whom- the blood came from.

"What's wrong, human?" The Sentinel tilted his head in confusion. "You look terrified..."

He snickered, Sans's blood dribbling down his chin and neck. "...What? Come on..." He took a step closer. "...is there something on my face?"

Frisk grimaced as Togore threw his head back and laughed. He flipped his spear around, the sharp end of it dripping with more...

 _No..._ Frisk heard in their mind. _Do not be intimidated by him..._

"Unfortunately, I bet you know what's about to happen to you. Human, let me tell you..." Togore's left eye turned to fire, his hands trembling with the excitement of another kill.

"Everything that I've done, everyone that I've killed, none of it is going to be remotely as implacable as what I'm going to do to you." Togore could barely contain his laughter. "And do you know why?"

The entire room seemed to darken, the air around Frisk heated up. Togore gripped his spear in both of his hands, his maniacal and bloodthirsty eyes boring into the child's soul.

"Because I have unbecome myself."

Togore went on the attack, stabbing his spear with precision and accuracy. Frisk felt the blade pierce their gut, and they shouted in pain.

The child backed up, feeling the wound. It looked horrible, but it actually didn't hurt that bad.

Frisk turned to Togore, slashing with their knife. Togore blocked and parried with his spear, then delivered an uppercut to Frisk's jaw. Frisk flew backward, landing with a _crunch_ in the crispy, burnt flowers.

Still, they hung on. Whatever that thing was that their soul had absorbed, it had given them more health, more determination. They had a chance...

The two slashed and hacked at each other, scattering ash from the flowers everywhere as they stepped. Although Togore was the bigger target, he was skilled with blocking Frisk's attacks with his spear. The closest the child got to actually hitting him was when their knife scratched the armor on his leg.

The Sentinel hurled his spear, making Frisk dodge to the left, then closed his fist. A wall of fire surrounded the child, moving in slowly...

Frisk looked around for an opening, but there was none. The fire closed, scorching their legs and pants. Frisk gritted their teeth, pulling out a piece of face steak as Togore retrieved his spear.

Again, Frisk charged him and slashed with their knife. Togore frowned as the knife cut through his armor, leaving a gash in his leg. But his frown quickly turned into a laugh as he did a backflip, pinning Frisk to the ground, and letting his hands catch on fire.

Frisk shouted as Togore's hands burned through their shirt. They squirmed away, holding their knife out in an attempt to warn him. Togore smirked, charging forward, and punched Frisk into the wall.

Frisk was put of options. Their best hit so far had seemed to barely faze the Sentinel. They begged Togore to spare them.

"Spare you? Hahahahaha!" Togore held his gut as he laughed. "Are you joking?" Frisk shook their head, asking Togore, "Don't you remember who you used to be?"

Togore looked at Frisk. "Who was I? I was just a sad guardian of an old heap of bricks. But now?" He held out his hands, smiling. "I'm this land's NIGHTMARE!"

Fire fell from the ceiling, landing all around Frisk. The child rolled and crawled to avoid the fire, but some of it hit their arm, slowly crawling up to their shoulder. Frisk struggled to put it out, knowing that this was what Togore wanted for them. A slow, painful demise. Frisk turned around.

"Please, listen..." They dropped the knife, "...I don't want to live in this world anymore. Just... make it quick, please..."

"End it quickly? Painlessly?!" Togore said in an incredulous tone. "Now you're really joking..." Togore held out his hand, catching Frisk's clothes on fire again. "To be honest, I can't even remember why I want to kill you... was it... it had something to do with my mother..." Togore shrugged. "...Eh, whatever. The only thing that matters now is that I get a little more blood on my hands."

Togore advanced, readying his spear, and Frisk begged him to spare them. This pain was unbearable... They had never had anything close to this happen to them...

"Again with the sparing... you're pathetic." Togore snorted. "More pathetic than all those I've killed who wouldn't fight back, or couldn't fight, even if they wanted to..." he sliced at Frisk, who got a deep cut in their arm.

Frisk clutched their arm, asking again if Togore could remember who he used to be. "Who we used to be doesn't matter anymore, if what we are now is something completely different, right?" Togore looked around the room, at the destruction that had come about by his actions.

"I don't care about who I was. All I care about is decimating everything I see." Togore stabbed Frisk again, and they shouted in pain: "Stop! Please!"

"No, no, no, I insist!" Togore twisted his spear. "I insist on keeping my promise!" He leaned in close, the heat from his fiery left eye scorching Frisk's face. "You're going to _wish_ you had burned alive in that volcano. You're going to _wish_ you hadn't run for your life each time I went after you." He pulled back his spear, looking with interest at the fresh blood that covered it.

"Now, let me make this fight one I'll remember, one I'll laugh about when I think of it." He leapt upwards, fire shooting out of his hands like flamethrowers. The Sentinel pointed his hands at the child, and Frisk hurried to get out of the way of the intense fire. "Let's turn this battle..." Togore slammed into the ground, unleashing a huge wave of fire that climbed up the walls of the throne room. "...into a one-on-one WAR!"

Frisk got to their feet, and was instantly knocked down by the flames. They felt their shirt collar catch on fire, and rolled to put it out. A blinding pain seared their side, and they looked up to see Togore's spear lodged in it. His hands were still on fire, and were making the entire spear red-hot.

Frisk stifled a sob of pain, but was unable to contain the tears.

"Crying already? Haha!" Togore laughed, ignoring Frisk as the human slashed his legs like an animal. "I'd never spare a crybaby like you!" Togore withdrew the spear and took a few steps back. Frisk moaned in pain and hurled the knife, which lodged itself in Togore's chest.

"Now quit crying..." he chuckled, plucking the knife out like it was nothing. "...that flame on your neck is dying down from the tears."

 _Hopeless... this is hopeless..._

"Have you ever heard the phrase, 'too far gone?'" Togore asked, wiping the blood off of his burning spear. "Well, I'm not too far gone... I'm just gone!" He grinned, hurling the spear at Frisk. Frisk slowly rolled, but the spear was too fast. It impaled their shoulder, pinning the child to the rubble behind them.

Frisk was tired of this. They just wanted this fight to end... they wanted to rewrite... to see their family again...

Frisk weeped for Togore to kill them.

"Just like I said you would..." Togore slowly approached, his eyes glaring hungrily at Frisk. "...that was so long ago, wasn't it?" He ripped the spear out of Frisk, smiling in delight as he heard Frisk scream. "You've begged... you've pleaded... you've weeped...and now... I can finally just execute you..." he held up his spear, glaring at Frisk.

"...but where would be the fun in that?" Frisk groaned and fell on their side, realizing that Togore still wasn't done. "It's just about over for you... but me?" He chuckled. "Heh, I know what's ahead of me. The power to cross the barrier..." he spun his spear, sending little flecks of blood everywhere. "...a whole underground of humans, waiting to be destroyed..."

"They're... they're all...dead..." Frisk whispered, and Togore laughed, obviously ignoring them.

"Hahaha! Did you think I was going to stop after killing you? No, human... there's too much to just let live..." he patted his spear affectionately, looking at it in awe. "...too much power to be consumed... and once I've gathered all the determination I can?" He said, winking and pointing at Frisk. "Well... Sans said something about separate timelines. Perhaps I'll start by finding a way to cross into them. I'll obliterate them... I'll obliterate them all!"

Frisk shook their head in disbelief. Togore was no longer out for revenge, now he was out for blood. "Every being I come across... every place I walk through... I'll bring it all to the ground!" He grinned, motioning to the destruction around him.

"One might call what I'm doing 'Genocide', but that's just a mass murder of a specific group, and I'm doing more than murder. You of all people know that." Togore laughed, engaging in the fight once more.

Frisk chewed on a face steak to heal up, then went back to slashing at him. Togore's aggression came with a weakness: he was more open to close attacks. _That's why Sans couldn't stop him..._ Frisk thought. _If he got too close, Togore would kill him in one hit..._ Frisk and Togore continued to exchange blows, slicing and hacking without relent. Togore would swipe with his spear, then get stabbed in the side by Frisk, then lob a fireball, so on and so forth.

Frisk was getting worn down, bleeding from several wounds, and Togore showed absolutely no sign of slowing down. He hadn't registered a single blow, almost as if it was doing no effect. Frisk grunted in frustration, slicing at him again.

Togore roared in pain, staggering back. Frisk looked at him in amazement, then slashed again. Togore gritted his teeth and kicked Frisk back, assessing his wounds.

"W-w-what? Why... why did I FEEL that?" He ran his hand over the most recent slash in his armor. "I haven't felt... any attack... from you..." Togore grunted, clenching his fist. "Argh... you've really... injured me..." he laughed, the flame in his eye growing brighter. "...well... I guess I shut start fighting like my life's on the line, huh?"

 _Uh oh..._

Togore roared, spearing Frisk in the arm. "DIE!" He slashed and slammed his spear into a helpless Frisk faster than any enemy they'd ever seen before. "DIE! DIE! DIE! DIE!" He unleashed wave after wave of fire onto Frisk. "JUST DIE!" Togore unleashed every attack he had, flames, spearing, punching... attacks more vicious than anything, not even Asgore, Undyne, or Flowey had fought like this.

But Frisk hung on, too determined to be killed.

"..." Togore stopped, speechless. The blood splattered on his face scrunched with his eyebrows in confusion. "...?" Togore shook his head in annoyance. "...Why are you not dead?" He looked at his hands. "I've tried everything... are you THAT determined to get away?" Togore gripped Frisk's collar in frustration. "What are you going to gain from ONE kill?"

Frisk didn't respond. They were a mess of broken limbs, burns, and deep gashes.

"..." Togore looked down, in deep thought. "That's..." he let go, staggering back. "...that's what I've done, isn't it?" He looked at his spear. "I've killed everyone, destroyed everything...I'm a monster..." he closed his eyes. "...outlaw... murderer ...I've killed things that couldn't help themselves..." Togore looked over at the wall. "...sick... young... elderly..."

Frisk leaned forward, listening as Togore admitted all of his fiendish acts. _There's no way he's actually feeling... guilty...right?_

 _Right?_

"...I killed them all as brutally as I could. What..." he closed his eyes again, leaning his head against the wall. "...what have I GAINED from this?..." Frisk looked up at Togore, who seemed to be in pensive contemplation. They smiled softly. This might finally be over.

Togore cracked a small, but malicious smile.

"A whole lot of execution points..."

Togore turned around, holding out his hand. Fire poured from his fingertips, enveloping Frisk in a hot cloud of torment.

"...I'LL NEVER QUIT!" He lunged forward, unleashing his fury and anger onto the horribly maimed child. "I'LL NEVER LEAVE!" Frisk was helpless, holding onto the last strand of determination left in them. "UNTIL EVERYTHING THAT I CAN POSSIBLY GET TO IS GONE FOREVER!" Togore was way too enraged, too powerful to be stopped.

"HAHAHAHAHA!" Togore's insane laughter echoed through the empty throne room, growing louder as Frisk grew closer and closer to death.

Frisk felt the world begin to darken, the only sense they could feel was sheer pain. This had to end... and someone had to die.

And Frisk was too determined to let it be them.

With the last bit of determination left in them, they lunged forward, screaming in pain, anger, and determination. They swiped their arm, slashing the blade of their knife through Togore's chest.

The Malum-bringer spun with the strike, flying backward, and crashed onto his face. He laid there, not making a single movement.

Then he dissolved, his dust spreading over the burning rubble of the castle.


	40. Scorched Earth Route- Epilogue

It was over.

Frisk stared at the dust from the Sentinel in astonishment. They hadn't really believed that they were going to be able to kill him.

The child managed to move their broken and burning arm, grabbing all the food they had left. Frisk quickly ate it, watching as the burns and cuts faded away.

Healed up, Frisk got to their feet, still looking at Togore's essence. Something had to happen now, right? All of that pain... all the bloodshed... this all happened for a reason, right?

Frisk waited patiently for something to happen. The minutes turned into hours, and the hours turned into days. Frisk's mind was exhausted from the fight, and they realized that they were openly talking to themself.

"Why isn't anything happening?"

"This is the ending you wanted, isn't it? What did you expect?"

"I just brought about a prophecy... I thought..."

"Thought what? That the thing would emerge from the underground? That you'd get a determination boost? That our brother would come back?"

Frisk frowned. " _Our_ brother?"

"Yes... He was my sibling before he was yours..."

Frisk looked down, trying to think through an explanation as to why this was happening. But the only answer was that they had gone insane.

"Who... who are you?"

"Me? You've heard of me, and I of you. My name is Chara."

 _Chara._ The human adopted by Asgore and Toriel.

"Yes... you've picked up the last piece left of me."

"Your soul... that thing I found earlier..."

"Well, it's not _completely_ my soul. I had to share it with someone."

Frisk's mind flashed back to the story of Asriel and Chara, remembering that Chara had died, and Asriel absorbed their soul.

"Asriel... is he-"

"No. He can't speak, or register anything. He's here, just... not in the way that we are."

Frisk sat down. This was crazy.

"Do you want to know what's crazy?" Frisk's mouth moved with Chara's words. "Thinking that it would be a good idea to turn _Togore Dreemurr_ into the Malum-bringer. What a great, well thought-out plan."

"I just wanted to see what happened..." Frisk argued.

"Then why did you get so upset when this happened?" Chara griped. "I mean, you knew he had something scary buried deep down inside... what else _could've_ happened?"

Frisk drummed their fingers on a rock. "I just... I just want things to be the way they were..."

"Nothing will ever be the way it was." Chara said. "Some of the things that Togore has done in this timeline has affected others. Forever."

Frisk shook their head. "I don't care. I had a home... a family..."

"And you traded it all away for a stupid prophecy." Chara sighed. "Tell me, after Asriel killed that thing, and then he died, why didn't you just rewrite the timeline with another happy life? You could've had your family back..."

"Because I knew what would happen." Frisk replied. "I couldn't bear to lose them again..."

Frisk's eyes rolled, but it was Chara who was doing it. "You're pathetic. You don't care about your friends... you just care about seeing what they can do."

Frisk hung their head, feeling overwhelming guilt for messing with those they cared about as if they were toys. "What do you want, Chara?"

Frisk's frown instantly turned into a smile. "I want what you want! My family... a happy life... but unfortunately, there's going to be a few... changes..."

"What kind of changes?" Frisk asked.

"I'm going to have to take someone, and replace them with someone else." Chara said slowly. "And someone else who was in your past will cease to exist as well."

Frisk hesitated. "Who are they?"

"You'll have to see what happens." Chara said. "After all, isn't that all you care about?"

Frisk waited for a long time before making their decision. It wasn't easy, they'd have to face monsters whose lives were destroyed and ended for Frisk's enjoyment, and they weren't sure how to live with them. Also, they were worried about who Chara was going to take away, who would replace them, and who was going to be erased from the timeline.

"Okay." Frisk said shakily. "Do it. Please"

((Hi everyone! This is the ending of the original timeline, as I mentioned earlier. I'd like to thank everyone who has read this story for giving some of their time to something that I wrote. I hope that it was enjoyable to you, and that you didn't get too attached to the characters before they all got killed. Now, I have a continuation of this story in mind, but I'd like you to let me know if you would like to hear it or not. It will deal with Frisk as they face the changes placed by Chara, and a new enemy that threatens to destroy any semblance of a happy ending for anyone. Feel free to comment on the story, likes, dislikes, and whether you'd like me to continue it. I'll make my decision after a few days. Thank you!))


	41. Rewritten

_"Wake up..."_

 _"...my child, wake up!"_

 _"This is all just a bad dream. Wake up, so it can end..."_

 _"...Frisk."_

 _"Frisk!"_

Frisk quickly sat up, breathing heavily. They could've sworn they were just at the ruined castle, but now...

They were in their old room, in one of the eastern towers of the castle. Frisk looked around the room, which had drawings all around it, with a desk in the corner. The creme-colored walls all looked the way they had before Frisk had started the last timeline, bringing back so many happy memories...

"Are you feeling alright?"

Upon hearing Toriel's voice, Frisk quickly got out of bed and hugged her. " _Mom!_ " They felt like crying, and clung to her. "Oh... well, good morning to you too!" Toriel laughed, hugging Frisk back. "We've got a special day today! Your brother is back from an assignment from his father, and he'll be eating breakfast with us today!"

 _Assignment? What assignment?_ Frisk didn't remember Asgore sending Asriel on any assignments when he was this age. But, then again, Chara said that things in the timelines had changed after the last one...

Frisk looked up at Toriel, and for a brief moment, the memory of killing her by toppling the pillar flashed through the child's mind, and they stifled a shout.

"Frisk..." Toriel frowned, looking at her adopted child with concern. "...you have been acting very strange this morning. Are you sure that you're okay?" Frisk shivered a little, trying to blot out the atrocities they had committed.

"Yeah..." they eventually said, smiling. "...I think I'm okay now."

After getting dressed (the usual striped shirt and shorts), Frisk headed downstairs, led by the smell of butterscotch pie. "...they seem okay..." Frisk heard Toriel say, and paused midway down the stairs. "...but I can't help but feel like something's going on with them." _Seems like she's on the phone..._ Frisk thought.

"No, I'm not sure if it's serious, just..." Toriel sighed. "...just keep an eye on them, please?" Frisk made their way down the stairs, and Toriel hung up. "Ah, greetings, my child!" Toriel smiled, setting her phone on the kitchen counter. "Breakfast may take a little longer, so feel free to talk with your friends for a few minutes." Toriel walked back to the kitchen, checking inside the oven.

Frisk slowly headed down the tower, not completely eager to talk with everyone who had been destroyed by their actions. Frisk had made it to the lower level, when a glowing, blue spear was hurled at them. It clipped a strand of their hair off, and buried itself in the castle wall.

"HUMAN!" Undyne's shout bounced off the walls, and Frisk backed away in fear. She looked furious, and had several more spears at the ready. "It's time for you to PAY for the crimes you've committed!"

 _How does she remember?!_ Frisk thought, before turning and running. "NNGGAAAAHH!" Undyne hurled herself through the air, and pinned Frisk to the ground. "Your final hour has come at last, outlaw!" Undyne shouted.

" _Please don't!"_ Frisk shouted, covering their face. _"Undyne, I'm so sorry!"_

Nothing happened.

Frisk looked up in confusion, seeing Undyne frowning.

"Uh, Frisk..." she said, scratching her head. "...I was... just kidding. We do this _every day."_ She stood up. "Are you okay, kiddo?"

Frisk sighed in relief. They had forgotten about Undyne's unusual form of greeting a friend. Frisk got up, smiling. "Sorry... I'm still a little tired, I guess."

"THERE'S NO TIME FOR SLEEPING, PUNK!" Undyne shouted, grinning widely. "The prince is finally coming back from that assignment he was given! This place is going to be CRAWLING with monsters wanting to ask him questions!" Undyne gripped her spear. "And it's MY job to beat up anyone who gets too close!"

"Um..." Frisk said. "...maybe... give them a warning... before beating them up?"

"Sure thing!" Undyne pulled her spear out of the wall, and headed towards the front gate. "See you later, Frisk!"

 _This is going better than I expected..._ Frisk thought. The past seemed to finally be the past again.

"N-no, Papyrus! Move t-t-the throne to y-your left!" "WHAT? MY LEFT? I THOUGHT YOU WANTED ME TO MOVE IT TO YOUR LEFT!"

Frisk watched as Alphys and Papyrus moved a throne down the hallway, Papyrus struggling to discern his right from his left.

"Do you two need some help?" Frisk called out, walking over to them. "HELP? NONSENSE, FRISK! THE GREAT PAPYRUS NEEDS NO HELP OTHER THAN HIS OWN!" Papyrus moved the chair to his right, and it hit a table with a picture of Asgore on it. The picture wobbled, then fell to the ground and smashed apart.

"ON SECOND THOUGHT... IT SEEMS LIKE WE _DO_ NEED SOME HELP..."

Frisk smiled, helping Alphys and Papyrus move the throne. "Why are you two moving this?" Frisk asked, to which Papyrus said, "THE PRINCE IS ON HIS WAY BACK! WE NEED TO MOVE HIS THRONE BACK TO THE THRONE ROOM!" Frisk tilted their head in confusion. "Why wasn't it already in the throne room?"

Alphys's eyes darted around nervously. "W-well..."

The chair suddenly became heavier, and the three friends dropped it.

"Zzzz..."

Sitting in the middle of the chair was Sans. He had teleported into it while they were talking.

"SANS!" Papyrus shook Sans's shoulder. "YOU CAN'T BE USING THE PRINCE'S THRONE AS YOUR PERSONAL SLEEPING CHAIR ANYMORE!" "Hmm-wha?" Sans's eyes slowly opened. "Oh, my bad." Sans hopped out of the chair, looking over at Frisk. "What's up, kid?" Frisk smiled and gave Sans a hug.

"I just thought I'd talk to all my friends before mom finished breakfast." Frisk said, smiling at their friends. Alphys looked over at Sans. "Hey, h-h-how is the... u-u-um..."

"The Temmie Uprising?" Sans chuckled. "We've got it under control."

 _Temmie Uprising?_ Frisk laughed at the thought. _This place_ has _changed..._

"So... he's coming back. You know, the prince..." Frisk spoke. Sans nodded. "I heard that the prince's first order of business when he got back was to have breakfast with his family." He chuckled.

"I heard." Frisk said. " Of course, I bet you were the first to hear about that, considering how far back you two go." They added, knowing that Asriel and Sans had always been good friends.

"Hmm? What are you talking about?" Sans asked, a worried look in his eyes.

"You... and... nevermind..." Frisk figured that Sans was probably messing with them. "Oh, Alphys, how's Gaster doing?"

" _Gaster?!"_ Sans sounded alarmed, but Alphys frowned.

"Who's G-Gaster?" She asked, narrowing her eyes. "Your boss... the royal scientist..." Frisk muttered in confusion. How could she not know?

"F-Frisk, _I'm_ the r-r-royal scientist." Alphys said, then helped Papyrus lift the throne and carry it away. Frisk stayed behind, pondering on what was going on. "Everything okay, Frisk?" Sans asked. "You're acting pretty strange." "I..."

Frisk remembered Chara's warning, that someone would be removed from the timelines completely. It must've been Gaster, everyone was acting like they had never heard of him...

"...I just remembered something." Frisk said, putting on an innocent smile. "Bye Sans!" They quickly left, running back up the stairs of the tower.

"Good talk..." Sans mumbled. "...sounds like Toriel was right, something's up."

Upon making it back to their room, Frisk opened their window, looking down at the gates to the castle. A huge crowd was gathering there, swarming around someone...

 _Asriel!_ Frisk smiled. Out of everyone they had lost, they had missed Asriel the most. Shouting came from below, and the crowd paused as Undyne began barking unnecessary threats at the monsters. Frisk looked closer, they still couldn't see Asriel...

They waited for a while, watching as the crowd slowly dispersed back to their homes, and Undyne walked back into the castle. Frisk sighed, laying back down on their bed. The smell of pie continued filling up the tower, but Frisk didn't feel like getting up. Not until their brother was back...

"Frisk, come quick! Your brother is back!"

 _That was quick..._ Frisk thought. _Good thing there was no dramatic interlude..._

Frisk hurried out of bed, running to the kitchen, where Toriel was hugging someone. "Welcome home, my child..." she said, smiling. "Glad to be home... Frisk! Greetings!" Frisk looked as Toriel stepped aside so Frisk's brother could talk to them. "Asr-" Frisk froze.

It was Togore.

"Frisk!" Togore walked forward, smiling widely. "I missed you!" Togore scooped Frisk up in a hug. "You and mom..."

 _"DIE!"_ Togore's murderous screams echoed through Frisk's mind. _"JUST DIE!"_

Frisk slowly hugged back, trying to remember that the timeline was rewritten, and Togore wasn't the Malum-bringer anymore. But why was he here? He died to save Asriel.

Frisk's eyes widened in shock. Chara had replaced Asriel with Togore.

 _"I have unbecome myself..."_ Togore's face, covered in Sans's blood, flashed in Frisk's mind. _"I'll tear everything to pieces!"_

A small cry escaped Frisk's throat, and they cowered in fear.

Togore set Frisk down. "Frisk..." he asked, concerned. Frisk looked back at him, trying to regain their focus. "What's the matter?" Togore said, cracking a soft smile. "Is there something on my face?" He asked, trying to lighten up the mood.

 _"Is there something on my face?"_ The memories began flooding back, Togore slaughtering innocent monsters, Frisk picking off any that had escaped, Te Deum burning from the wrath of the volcano, the sheer hopelessness and pain of that last encounter with Togore, and the animalistic rage Frisk had to use to make him scatter to dust...

Frisk couldn't take it. They ran, getting as far away from the castle as possible. This was no place to be... no world to live in...

"Frisk!" Frisk looked behind them, Togore had ran after them. "You're scaring us! What's going on?" But Togore's face was flashing, between reality and his blood-stained face from the last timeline.

Frisk continued to run, being strangled by the sins weighing down on their neck...


	42. Puzzled

There was only one word that could describe Sans at the moment.

Puzzled. Absolutely puzzled.

He had heard the story from Toriel and Togore, Frisk had completely freaked out once Togore had come home, and took off. This, backed with their odd questions and behavior earlier, could only mean one thing.

Rewrites.

The concept of human determination was an area known by most, but understood by few. Sans was one of the lucky few who understood how it worked. As a human passes through life, certain events that unfold around them are 'written'. And once those events are 'written', the human can start back at them if they die, or start a whole new life entirely if they so choose.

All of this... it had 'determination' written all over it.

Sans stepped into a broom closet, taking a quick shortcut to the ruins. Frisk had been running in that general direction, so Sans figured that he might as well get there first.

Sans liked Frisk. He really did. Not right off the bat, of course. One can't completely trust a human... and Sans had been pretty convinced that they were the star of the infamous Malum prophecy. But nothing had happened. Nothing but good things, anyway. Frisk was raised by Toriel, Papyrus was trained by Togore and Undyne, everything seemed to be perfect.

That was... until this morning. Sans had gone to check on Gaster, only to find out that he didn't exist anymore. It was quite a shock to Sans, but he masked it well after Alphys told him that she was the royal scientist. There were no records or indications that the famous Dr. W. D. Gaster was even real.

But then Frisk asked about him... and Sans knew that something was up.

Something was looming over everything, about to take away this happy life.

Sans stepped out into the cold, dimly-lit halls of the ruins. It didn't seem to be a welcoming place (no wonder the Sentinel was a big bag of awkward), and Sans had no clue why Frisk would go this way.

Sure enough, there the child was. Frisk was lying on their side, in a bed of golden flowers. Sans cautiously approached, checking behind himself.

"Heya, Frisk." Frisk slowly looked up at Sans with red, teary eyes. "Not really your brightest day, huh?"

Frisk hid their face again.

Sans sighed, walking over to Frisk and sitting next to them. "Talk to me, kid." Sans said, adjusting his hat. "Tell me what happened in the last timeline." Frisk mumbled something unintelligible, and Sans leaned closer. "Could you say that again, buddy?"

"Mistakes." Frisk said. "Murder. Doom. Malum."

Sans sighed. "Good thing I don't remember that..." he chuckled. "...I'm sure it wasn't your fault-"

"It was. I'm the one who drove him to-"

" _Him?_ " Sans repeated. "Him who?" Frisk hesitated for a minute, then replied, "Togore. I twisted him to the point where he turned into a killer."

 _Togore Dreemurr... the Malum-bringer?_ It sounded like the punch line to a bad joke, but Frisk was taking it seriously.

Sans shook his head. This was so messed up. They were talking with a kid, his friend, who had likely just killed him, or done something that led to his death.

But a friend was always a friend, and Sans wasn't going to let Frisk water the flowers with their tears.

"Frisk..." he started, trying to think of something positive. "...you weren't the one who killed, so why feel guilt about the killings?" Frisk looked up. "I killed some. I knew a few, others I didn't... but the worst thing is that-" they wiped their eyes. "-that I went through with it. I set in motion things that led to everyone I cared about dying... all because I just wanted to see what happened!" Frisk turned away.

"Well... did you care?" Sans asked.

"Wh...what?"

"Did you care about what happened?" Sans sighed. "What you have... your determination... it's probably not easy to live with, and the answers it could give are probably pretty tempting to just let go of."

Frisk scoffed. "Are you saying that I did nothing wrong?"

"Oh no, you definitely screwed up." Sans said quickly. "I mean, twisting Prince Awkward into a homicidal maniac and not stopping it until the last minute isn't something you'd want on your conscience. All I'm saying is..." Sans patted Frisk's back. "...something inside of you cares, so don't blot the good out to focus on the bad, okay?" He winked. "That leads to a load of garbage that you don't wanna deal with."

Frisk continued laying on the flowers. At least they stopped crying...

"Thanks, Sans." They said quietly after a few minutes.

"Anytime, kiddo." Sans got up, leaving Frisk to think about what he'd said, and headed towards the castle.

On the way, Sans stopped at his favorite hat shop. Amabilia had the best selection of hats anywhere on Te Deum, and it gave Sans a good cover for checking on the ramifications of Gaster's experiment on her. _If it's even his experiment anymore..._

Opening the door, Sans saw Ama sitting on one of her tables, looking up at Togore. The Sentinel was currently in a deep conversation with her.

"It's like they were scared of me..." he said, looking at the ground. "...have you ever known Frisk to act scared of anything?" "No, it's not like them..." Ama said, standing up and holding his hands. "...but I'm sure it'll pass. You've always found a solution, Togore."

Togore smiled softly, a blush creeping over the scar on his face. "If you say so, gorgeous..." Ama giggled, and the two kissed before Togore headed out. Sans winked at him as he passed by, and Togore looked at the ground in embarrassment.

"What a goofball." Ama said when he was gone. "Yeah, but he's your goofball." Sans said in return, walking over to the hats. "Got any new ones?"

"Nope..." Ama said, walking over to help Sans look. As she did, Sans took a quick look at her hand to see if Togore had manned up and proposed. But there was no ring...

" _Still?"_ Sans said, pointing to her hand. Ama shrugged. "You know him... always hesitant about what he's doing, as if the world might burn if he makes the wrong decision..."

 _Apparently the world_ does _burn when he makes a wrong decision..._ Sans thought to himself, then looked up at Ama. "How about you? Any flashes lately?"

Ama shook her head. "Nothing lately. Just managing a shop and spending time with the world's most awkward boyfriend." She laughed. "I love him, though. He's always trying to get me to achieve my dreams, always letting me have a say in anything... and he's so sweet..." she shook her head. "...sorry, too much information."

Sans waved his hand. "No problem. It's good to see that you two are so happy." It really was. Sans hadn't see a couple more united than Amabilia and Togore. It was a pretty rare occurrence.

"Welp, I'm off." Sans tipped his hat, and headed towards the door. "Goodbye, Sans!" Ama said, her voice sounding like a gentle breeze on a spring afternoon.

Sans was on his way to the castle, admiring the scenery as he walked. _Beautiful day outside..._ He thought. All of a sudden, a dark, familiar feeling fell over him, and he stopped.

This was the spot.

Sans shuddered, remembering his fight with Asriel all those years ago... _You cannot stop me, Sans!_ Asriel's voice rang in his ears. _We're going to save our kind!_

Thinking back even more, Sans began remembering the brutal exchange of fire and bones, Sans trying to keep his friend from getting himself killed. But he didn't give it his all. And Asriel was dead before the sun went down.

 _Don't blot the good out to focus on the bad, okay?_ Sans's own words came back to bite him, and he stood silently, reflecting on how his flaws had made him who he was now.


	43. Going Home

The castle doors slowly creaked open, and Frisk stepped inside. _Would it kill them to fix the hinges on this thing?_ Frisk thought in irritation.

A guard by the door let Frisk in, and the child slowly walked down the hall. They had seen the stainglass windows nearly a million times, but in this timeline, there were a set of new ones at the end. The first new one was of Frisk crawling above ground, followed by Frisk uniting all their friends.

They made a left to head to the tower they lived in, keeping their hands in their pockets. The conversation with Sans had helped them feel a little better, but now Sans knew for sure what they were capable of. And they still had to talk to Togore eventually...

Frisk walked inside the kitchen, seeing Toriel bent over the sink. "Mom?" Frisk asked, and Toriel quickly wiped her eyes, then turned around. "Frisk!" She scooped up the child in her arms. "My child, what has gotten into you?!"

"I was... seeing some things." Frisk said. "But it's over now."

The loving goat mother set Frisk down, then quickly picked up her phone. "They're back! Hurry home, please!" Toriel set the phone back down, then smiled at Frisk. "Well, I'm glad that whatever was going on has passed, my child! Your brother should be home soon..." Toriel wiped her eyes again, laughing softly. She then turned her attention to the dishes in the sink, cleaning them quickly.

The living room was unoccupied, so Frisk decided to sit in the huge reading chair. A small book with monster songs was lying on the chair, and Frisk flipped through it for a while. They stopped at one page, looking at a song entitled _'The Flower Bed'_. The poem had three stanzas, but Frisk only read the first one.

 _Have you seen the flower bed? Whose petals shine of gold? In a land of sunsets red, Our island home of old._

After Frisk had finished reading the stanza, Togore walked into the living room, smiling at Frisk.

"Hello..." he said, holding out his hand to shake, then awkwardly pulled his hand back, opting for a fist-bump. Togore grimaced at himself, pulling his hand back again. "...so... I'm... I'm very happy that you're home, Frisk." Togore sat on the armrest, his tattered cape settling along the back of the chair. Frisk looked at his armor, then scrunched their eyebrows. "Why haven't you gotten a new set of armor?"

"Oh. Well, I... I just thought that it'd be a waste of armor. Mine works fine, even if the fabric is worn."

 _The fabric is worn. That's an understatement._ Frisk thought, looking at the holes that peppered the cloth hanging over his shoulders and upper arms. "How do you expect to impress Ama in an old outfit like that?" Frisk asked, smirking at him.

"I-I-" Togore stuttered, his face reddening. "-I suppose I could... dress nicer." Frisk laughed. This was the Togore they remembered. The awkward, kind-hearted guardian who had saved Frisk from being an absorbed soul forever. The same guy who had also died to bring Asriel back...

"Frisk?" Togore asked, and Frisk snapped back to attention. "Sorry... hey, I've been meaning to ask you about that whole 'Temmie Revolution'..." The child asked. Togore sighed, rolling his eyes. "Of all the assignments I've been given as co-captain of the royal guard... this one... just..." he held up his hands in exasperation. "...just _why?!_ "

Togore walked over to the television, turning it on, and then flipped through a few channels. He stopped as one went to a commercial break.

"Far too long... have our kind been overlooked..." a monotone voice spoke from the television, but the commercial's screen was black. "yaYA! agrees! TeM ben overlookd tu mUCh!" A voice, distinctly temmielike, agreed, and the television screen became static.

"All our contributions... all our history-"

"temmie hav rich history! VERY famus!"

"-and instead of the land we wanted? We have only been given a small island..." the static organized, turning into a temmie, dressed in a suit. The Temmie was seated in a desk, with its hands folded.

"Us temmies have been discriminated... cut off from other monsters... but now, now is the time for our kind to claim what is ours!" The temmie stood up, pounding its fists on the table. "O O O! TeM wanna gO hom! Temmie gunna do WUt it taks too wyn!" The tem that must've been holding the camera declared.

"Join our rebellion..." the suited Temmie said, and the screen faded into a logo of a temmie's face. "Join the TEMVOLUTION!" Togore turned the television off, then looked at Frisk.

Frisk wasn't sure whether to laugh, be worried, or be terrified.

"Yeah... so this one temmie named Rob is serving as their wartime ambassador, and we're having a meeting with him tomorrow..." Togore said, annoyance prevalent in his voice.

"Rob... that's the temmie from the commercial..." Frisk thought out loud. "...The only temmie that acts normally..." Togore nodded. "They may be idiotic and nonsensical, but their randomness and incoherent thinking process makes them unpredictable." He fiddled with the ends of his blonde hair, pushing it back into the style he preferred. "We will be speaking of a resolution to their demands."

Togore stood up, heading to the tower that he lived in. "Goodbye, Frisk." He said. "Sleep well tonight, okay?" Frisk nodded, and their adoptive brother walked out of the living room. As he did, his right horn scraped against the bookshelf, causing several books to fall. Togore groaned in embarrassment, and Frisk quickly got up to help him. Once they were done, Togore said goodbye again, then left.

Frisk looked back at the book, re-reading the first stanza of _The Flower Bed_. They decided that they'd read the rest later, and went to sleep, resting their head against the soft armrest.


	44. The Meeting

It was time for the meeting, and Toriel was _not_ on board with her son negotiating with temmies alone.

"Mom, I'm going to be fine..." Togore said reassuringly as they walked to Tem Island. "Maybe... but maybe they've prepared a trap..." Toriel countered. "Maybe they're planning to hurt you..."

Togore chuckled. "I don't think they could hurt me if they tried." Toriel sighed. He had a point, temmies didn't really seem dangerous. "Don't think that you're talking to them without me." Toriel said, and her son nodded obediently. On their way, they passed a small statue that was playing Asriel's theme. Toriel sighed sadly, but she had to push onwards.

They arrived at the bridge, which was being guarded by two temmies. They were equipped with bicycle helmets, flip flops, and egg whisks.

"Greetings, temmies." Togore said.

"HOi!" They responded at the same time. "Im teMMie!"

"Okay..." Togore said. "Where's your ambassador?" "Oooooo! Yur talkin abouT Rob!" One of the temmies said happily. "He oNly wanna talk wif da cOOT hooman!" "Awawawawawah!" The other temmie said. "Sucha CUTE hooMAN!"

Togore could barely keep himself from laughing. Toriel sighed, texting Frisk to meet them at the bridge to Tem Island. They waited, watching as the temmies attempted to play solitaire with two players.

"Mom?" Toriel heard Frisk behind her, and smiled. It was always nice to hear Frisk's voice. "My child-" she turned around, but her mouth shut when she saw that Asgore had gone with them.

"Howdy, Tori!" Asgore smiled. "I thought it'd be best if I accompanied Frisk, to make sure they were okay."

Toriel didn't respond.

"Hmm..." Asgore looked at the solitaire-playing temmies. "...that seems like an interesting game, maybe Tori and I could play on a team!"

Toriel intensified her glare, and Asgore shut up.

"Now, where's Rob?" Togore said, looking at the guard temmies. The temmies' faces left their bodies, hovering across the bridge. "Wonder what that was all about..." Togore mumbled, to which Toriel responded, "I'd bet they're going to get Rob." "You know, Tori..." Asgore said. "...maybe we could tag-team this! We always were at our best when we did things together-" " _Be quiet, Asgore!"_

Toriel saw Togore flinch out of the corner of her eye, and a small knot of guilt twisted in her stomach. She knew that her son understood why they had parted, but he always hated seeing his parents fight.

Eventually, the temmies' faces returned, escorting Rob. He was dressed in the same suit and tie as the commercial.

"Hi." He said in a monotone voice. "I'm Rob."

Togore nodded. "I'm well aware of that, now let us discuss your terms-"

"Oh, for goodness sake!" Rob said, his voice changing from monotone to angry scottish. "Your dialogue is so... so..." He waved his paws in frustration. _"...predictable!"_

"What?" Toriel shook her head. "Why are you-"

"You didn't think that was my real voice, did you?" Rob scolded. "You fat bloke..." Rob quickly sat down, using his monotone voice to do an impression of himself. " _Hi, I'm Rob. I'm the most boring, bland, and unoriginal temmie in existence."_ He shook his head. "Pathetic on your part, if you ask me..."

"Why... nevermind, what do you want?" Togore asked. "No one here wants a war..." "Us temmies..." Rob began pacing back and forth. "...deserve MORE than we have been given! All our history... all our contributions... and we are given the smaller of these two islands?!"

"You've got your own island, no other type of monster can say that." Toriel argued. "Anyways..." Rob said, continuing. "...it seems that conflict is unavoidable st this point." Toriel watched Rob intently as he turned to Frisk. "Human... you are aware of the power of your determination, correct?"

"Yes." Frisk responded.

Rob nodded. "You see... these... absolute _imbeciles-_ " he pointed at his guards. "-these _hopeless morons_... this army of boneheads that I have assembled... inside each of them is a power that is wonderfully close in strength to your silly 'determination'." Rob chuckled. "Now, all I have to do is awaken it, and you will all be defeated."

Toriel rolled her eyes. "You're ridiculous. You know that you have nothing, and that's why you want to negotiate." "Ah, my negotiation terms!" Rob clapped his hands. "My only terms are that you get off this island, and let us claim it."

"All this negotiating..." Asgore spoke up. "...maybe we should try it sometime, Tori-" "ASGORE!"

Rob chuckled. "You're pathetic. Bickering amongst yourselves, when a danger so prevalent stands before you." Toriel sighed. "You're the ridiculous one-" " _Us tems shall have our revenge for being cast out!"_ Rob shouted. " _We shall crush you with the might of our detemmienation!"_

Toriel finally laughed. She had been trying not to, but Rob's intense, serious, manner was making the Temvolution seem even more hilarious.

"You won't be laughing for long..." Rob sneered. "The temmies shall laugh as we watch your essence disperse in the wind-" "Did you..." Togore said darkly, his head bowed. "...just threaten my family?" "-Of course I did! So what, you moron?"

Togore lifted his head. His eye was ablaze, and the flame seemed to slash through the wind...

"Oh dear... in a bad mood, are we?" Rob chuckled. "That's fine... Frisk knows all about what happens when dear brother Togore gets mad..." He looked at Frisk. "...don't you, Frisk?" Toriel frowned at Rob's comment, and noticed that Frisk was visibly troubled.

"Well, goodbye, then..." Rob waddled back onto the bridge, the temmie faces escorting him. "...I'm looking forward to see you weep for mercy soon."

Togore roared like a lion, and stormed towards the bridge. It took both Toriel and Asgore to hold him back.

"My son-" Toriel said. "-violence is not the answer! We need a more peaceful way to resolve this!" Togore's fiery eye began to dim, and he said, "They want to hurt you..." "I know." Toriel said. "But they won't win. Togore, please calm down!" Toriel had never seen her son like this... it was bothersome...

Eventually, Togore's eye returned to normal, and he took a deep breath. He looked to the path beside them, pointing down it. "Frisk has already left..." He said. Toriel looked over, seeing Frisk quickly walking back to the castle.

She hung her head. There was still something going on with her child...


	45. Lunch

As Frisk sat at the kitchen table, they couldn't help but giggle over the meeting that had taken place. The temmies actually believed that they were capable of war. It was too funny...

A wonderful smell reached Frisk's nose, and they heard Toriel walking back from cooking. Papyrus and Undyne were over for lunch, and they wanted to hear all about the meeting. "Frisk, you wanted soup..." Frisk smiled as Toriel set the soup in front of them. "Thanks, mom." They said.

"And for our first special guest..." Toriel said, smiling at Papyrus. "...we have his favorite meal!" Toriel set a plate of spaghetti in front of the skeleton, and his eyes lit up like fireworks. "WOWIE! MY ABSOLUTE FAVORITE FOOD IN EXISTENCE. THANK YOU, TORIEL!" "No problem, Papyrus." Toriel said sweetly. "And for Undyne-"

Undyne leaped up, landing with her feet on her chair. " _The legendary hero! The only sandwich made to resemble a sword! If you don't like it, you're a total WIMP!"_ Toriel laughed. "Yes, of course, Undyne." Undyne sat down as Toriel gave her the sandwich. "And Togore-" Toriel turned to the head of the table, a sad look flashing across her face.

"Mom... you know that he already planned to go out, right?" Frisk asked. "I did..." Toriel sighed, looking at the empty chair. "...but it's so strange to not be eating with my son..."

"Hey, Toriel..." Undyne said, smiling reassuringly. "...he _has_ to go out tonight! After all..." She shrugged. "...it is the one-year anniversary of when he met Ama. You raised that guy to be a polite, respectful dude, and I'm sure they're both really happy." Frisk looked over at Undyne, impressed by how well she had done with comforting Toriel.

Toriel made a small smile, going back to the kitchen to get her meal.

It wasn't long before Frisk started talking about the meeting. "...So the temmies are all wanting to kick us off the island..." Frisk said, Undyne and Papyrus listening intently. "...And they're being led by the only sane temmie we know of." Undyne chuckled. "This is going to be one weird showdown..." "BUT WE HAVE THE GREATEST TRIO OF THE ROYAL GUARD TO STOP THEM! UNDYNE, TOGORE, AND I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS!" Toriel and Undyne smiled, and Frisk nodded at him. "I'm sure we'll all be fine, Papyrus."

"So this... 'Rob'... what was he like?" Asked Undyne. "Well, his voice isn't actually monotone, for one." Frisk said. "That's just a fake voice he uses for... some reason... but he actually has a Scottish accent." Undyne frowned. "That makes no sense." "Rob said something about all temmies having some sort of power... He called it, 'detemmienation'. But I think he's just making it up." Frisk added.

Undyne nodded, munching on the last bite of her legendary hero. "Well, whatever that punk's up to, we're going to stop it." Papyrus slurped some spaghetti noodles, then said, "UNDYNE'S RIGHT! NO ONE HAS EVER BEEN ABLE TO DEFEAT US WHEN WE WORKED TOGETHER! NOT EVEN-" Papyrus frowned. "ER... UNDYNE, WHO WAS THAT MONSTER WE FOUGHT AFTER TOGORE AND ASGORE BATTLED EACH OTHER? IT WAS... SOMETHING THAT COULD SUMMON STARS, LIGHTING, AND OTHER THINGS..."

"What are you talking about?" Undyne made a confused face. "After Togore and Asgore quit fighting, we all just..." She frowned. "...just... huh, we _did_ fight something, I just can't remember what it was..." _Well, this is different..._ Frisk thought to themself. In the timeline that they'd battled Asriel, everyone had been able to remember the fight. But now, it just seemed like some of it had been cut from their memory...

"Well, whatever it was, I'm sure that it was no problem for you three to deal with." Toriel said. "You definitely are the royal guard's dream team."

Once she had finished talking, Toriel picked up everybody's plates, taking them to the kitchen to be washed. Papyrus and Undyne got up to leave, but not before Frisk hugged them both. "GOODBYE, FRISK!" Papyrus said happily. "Yeah, see ya, punk!" Undyne grinned, and they walked down the steps of the tower. As they headed down the tower, Frisk heard Papyrus say, "MAYBE WE CAN DEFEAT THE TEMMIES WITH SPAGHETTI!" "Papyrus, there's not going to be any fighting... besides, how could you fight with spaghetti?" The child smiled as they continued listening to the two argue as long as they could.

Frisk walked into the kitchen, seeing Toriel wash the dishes more slowly than usual.

"Everything alright, mom?" Frisk asked, climbing up onto the kitchen counter.

"Oh... it's just Togore..." Toriel said. "...I can still remember when he was just a baby, and I raised him alone. Then, when he was still very young, he wanted to protect me. So, I found a practice dummy, and helped him learn how to talk peacefully. But soon, he went into combat-" she looked over at Frisk. "-not to kill, of course, but to defend. He trained for years... until one day, I saw my sweet baby boy, and-" she leaned her head over the sink, taking in a breath and shutting her eyes. "-and... I didn't recognize him."

Frisk scooted closer to Toriel, hugging her shoulders as a tear rolled down her face.

"He was a warrior, dressed in armor, and willing to protect all the inhabitants of the ruins from harm. I was proud of what he had become, but..." She wiped her eyes. "...I just couldn't help but miss the sweet little child who used to wear striped shirts... who'd sing songs for me while I cooked... whom I could hold in my arms..." Frisk didn't let go, hugging Toriel tighter as she continued crying.

"And now, he's found a woman. A beautiful, kind-hearted, woman, who strives to be her best both for herself, and for others." Toriel smiled softly. "I couldn't dream of a better monster for my son to be with, but sometimes I just-" "Wish you could rewrite what happened." Frisk said. They knew the feeling.

Frisk stayed in the kitchen, keeping their mother company. It was the least they could do for someone they loved...


	46. The Flower Bed

_Ring-ding!_

The bell rang as Togore opened the door to Ama's shop. This was it, this was the day.

"Togore!" Ama beamed when she saw him, quickly walking over to hug him. A smile, bright as possible, crawled across Togore's face as he embraced her, and he kissed her soft, ash blonde hair.

"So..." Togore cleared his throat, looking down at Ama. "...happy anniversary, sweetheart!" Ama looked up at him, keeping her arms around him. "Happy anniversary!" She said sweetly. "I still can't believe that you got reservations at the MTT Diner!" Togore shrugged. "Being captain of the royal guard has its perks..." Ama chuckled, walking back to her desk to organize her belongings. "You always identify yourself with the royal guard, rather than the royal family. It'd usually be the other way around for most..."

Togore darted his eyes to the door. "Yeah... we'll talk about that at dinner, okay?" He said hesitantly. Ama looked at him in curiosity. "What else is there to talk about?" She asked. "Well... it's nothing bad, I think... I mean, of course it's nothing bad, that'd be ridiculous. Heh heh..." Togore gave Ama an unconvincing thumbs-up.

Ama just smiled and shook her head. "I love you Togore, but you realize how bad you are at covering stuff up, right?" Togore sighed, and his shoulders slumped a little. Ama walked over, shaking her hands. "W-wait! I wasn't trying to- ugh..." Ama said. "...I didn't mean that to be rude, just..." "I'm the most awkward monster on Te Deum. Yeah, I know..."

Togore smiled at her reassuringly. "Are you ready?" He asked, and she nodded. Togore took her hand, and they headed towards the West End.

 **One hour earlier...**

"Son, are you alright?" Togore looked over at the throne next to his, seeing Asgore. The king looked concerned, and Togore nervously looked at the ground. "Yes, dad..." He rested his arms on his throne's golden armrests. It was a comfortable chair, and it had made Togore fall asleep on more than one occasion.

A line of monsters were filing into the throne room, each of them wanting to ask Togore and Asgore a question.

"Prince Togore, what is your plan for the temmies?"

"Prince Togore, why don't you spend more time in the throne room? We hardly ever get to ask you questions..."

"King Asgore, how do you plan on aiding your son?"

"Prince Asriel-"

"Togore." The king corrected, and Togore felt a small pain in his chest. It always hurt to hear the name of his deceased brother (unfortunately, the two names got confused all the time, so he heard it a lot.)

Once all the monsters were gone, Togore slumped in his throne, resting his head on his hands. He _hated_ being a prince. He'd take a day of hard work with the royal guard over an hour of this...

"Togore..." Asgore got up from his throne, walking over to his son. "...why are you so upset?" Togore sighed. "This isn't exactly my favorite hobby..."

Asgore chuckled. "That's fine, even though I find these questions the most exciting part of my day." Togore stood up, looking back at his throne. "Dad..." He looked over. "...do you know what I'm planning today?"

Asgore nodded. "I do. And you know I wholeheartedly support your choice." Togore looked down at the flowers. "I still don't have a-"

Something caught his eye. Something shining brighter than all the golden flowers...

Togore picked up the small... whatever it was... it seemed clear, but a bright, white light was shining inside of it.

 _Perfect... it's perfect!_

"Gotta go, bye dad!" Togore raced off before Asgore could respond, heading to the castle's blacksmith.

The blacksmith was in one of the west towers, and usually wasn't busy. Which made this the perfect time to ask him to make something...

"Taediosum!" Togore shouted the blacksmith's name as he made it to his shop. "Taediosum, I need-" Togore stopped. He had never actually met Taediosum, and he seemed... very boring...

"What do you need?" Taediosum said, munching on a donut. He resembled an armadillo, with a heavy shell and long snout. "Um..." Togore held out the thing he had found. "Can you set this in a ring?" Togore asked.

Taediosum looked at Togore for a minute, munching on the donut.

"Sure." The blacksmith said, taking the thing and walking into the back of his shop. Togore leaned against the wall, knowing this was going to take a while-

"Done." Taediosum tossed Togore a ring. Even though it had been less than twenty seconds, it was still hot from smelting. The glowing gem in the middle was perfectly carved. "Thanks, Taediosum!" Togore said. Taediosum held up a 'peace' symbol, picking up his unfinished donut.

 **One hour later...**

"SO..." Togore said a little louder than normally. He covered his mouth, then looked down. "So... how's your business?" Amabilia snorted in laughter, and Togore laughed with her. His anxiety was making his poor social skills even worse.

"It's great..." Ama said, cutting her MTT steak. "...I'm actually going to be expanding the business soon." Togore took a bite of his steak, nodding. "That's great! I'm so happy for you..." He looked up at her. "You're a winner, you know that?" Ama smiled at him. "I'm going to be manufacturing helmets for the royal guard."

Togore dropped his fork. "Really? _Really?!_ I've always wanted a helmet..." Ama laughed. "I'll be sure to make you a customized one." She went back to her steak, and Togore sat up a little.

"About the royal guard..." Togore rubbed his neck nervously. "...I'm going to be staying with them." "Of course you are, goofball!" Ama looked up. "You're their captain-" "No, I mean... I'm going to let Frisk be Asgore's successor." He said quickly. "They're better at talking than I am, and..." Togore looked at his plate. "...I never really liked being a prince, anyway. I'll just go with the guard full-time." He didn't want to look up. Ama probably wasn't going to like this...

"About time..." she said happily, and Togore looked up in surprise. "Seriously?" He asked. "You'd rather have a royal guard than a prince?" Ama nodded. "Definitely. A tough, protective royal guard is way more attractive than a prince who sits and barks orders all day..." Togore perked up. _Well, I can't say that I don't like the sound of that..._ "Ama..." He shook his head. "...You're wonderful. I love you." Ama smiled and rested her hand on his. "I love you too."

Once they had finished eating, Togore took Ama on a walk down the West End beach. "Where are we going?" She said, shaking her head in amusement. "You just keep pulling surprises out of your head..."

"We're going there." Togore pointed to the ruins. "There's something that I'd like to show you..."

Togore led Ama to the bed of golden flowers, and she stooped down to touch them. "You lived here?" "Sure did..." He said, gently pulling up a flower from the ground. "...pretty nice, huh?" Ama nodded. "That's an understatement-" Togore kissed her when she turned around, softly sliding the flower behind her ear.

"Well, you're acting awfully romantic today..." Am remarked, turning around to look at the flowers.

 _Now_.

Togore took a knee while her back was turned, pulling out the ring from the leather pocket in his armor.

"Honestly, this is the one of the best dates we've been o-" Ama gasped and covered her mouth when she turned around, too stunned to speak.

"Hey..." Togore smiled. "...I'll try not to make this awkward, so..." He took a deep breath, trying not to freak out. "...it's simple, Ama. I love you. I love you so, so much. You try hard to be successful, and help others in the process... you've got a heart that can't be described... and..." He looked at her eyes. "...You're the most beautiful girl on Te Deum." Ama's eyes watered, and she sank down to him. "Ama..." He asked, reaching one hand forward to brush her hair, and holding the ring with his other. "...Ama, will you marry me?"

She tackled him, knocking him onto the ground as she kissed him. Togore smiled as he kissed back, feeling the relief wash over him. "So... that's a yes?" He asked, and she laughed at him.

Hours passed, and they didn't get up. Togore nestled her head in his armored arm, brushing his hand along her face. "Pretty tired, huh?" He said, and she nodded, her eyes closed. "Can you sing for me?" She asked, and he sighed. "I'm guessing that you want to hear-" "Yeah, I do." She said, opening her eyes. "Please?"

Togore nodded. He knew the poem ' _The Flower Bed_ ' by heart, he used to sing it to his mother when he was little. He sang, beginning with the first stanza:

"' _Have you seen the flower bed? Whose petals shine of gold? In a land of sunsets red, our island home of old...'"_

Toriel used to have a bunch of books mysteriously delivered to her, one of them being a book of monster poems. ' _The Flower Bed_ ' was written shortly after Toriel went to the ruins, pregnant with Togore.

"' _Have you seen the flower bed? In the room of the throne? The guards keep it protected, inside the walls of stone...'"_

The first two stanzas were peaceful, and unassuming. But it was the third stanza that always made Togore sad...

"' _He has seen the flower bed, as he came from the west. In a time of darkest dread, he found a place to rest._ '"

Togore had done research on the poem, wanting to know whom the poem meant by, 'he'. Apparently, ' _The Flower Bed_ ' had originally been written for a funeral, and had a melody that no one used with it. They normally just said it as a regular poem, with no music or melody. Togore found the melody, and learned that, nearly thirty years ago, ' _The Flower Bed_ ' was known by a different name.

' _His Theme_ '


	47. Warning

It wasn't long after eight that Frisk decided to go to bed. It had been a roller coaster of a day, from the Temvolution to Toriel admitting her grief over Togore growing up. What they needed now was some _rest._

Frisk had changed into some pajamas and hopped in bed, eagerly awaiting the sweet dreams that were sure to follow. But as soon as their back hit the mattress, their closet door creaked open.

 _Oh, COME ON! Will it kill someone for me to get some sleep?_

Frisk walked to the door, slamming it shut. The door promptly opened again.

Frisk rolled their eyes, slamming the door for the second time.

Once again, the door opened.

Frisk grabbed a small chair from the corner of the room, and barricaded the door with it. This time, the door stayed shut.

Frisk sighed in relief, climbing back into the bed. Their eyes began to close, and-

 _SNAP!_

The legs of the chair snapped, and the door swung open. Frisk sat up, panicking when they saw something slithering out of the closet. Frisk scooted to the far side of the bed, holding their pillow up to hide. For a minute, there was nothing but silence. But then they heard a voice. A scratchy, high-pitched voice.

"Howdy!"

Frisk pulled down their pillow, and sure enough, Flowey the flower was right in front of them.

"I've missed you, buddy!" Flowey's withered face grinned maliciously. "So, SO much!" He snarled through gritted teeth. Frisk was too scared to do move. "A-A-Asriel?" They stuttered, hoping that might get Flowey to stop being so demonic...

"Hahaha! Asriel Dreemurr is dead, you idiot!" Flowey laughed. "After all... you were there, right?"

Frisk's mind flashed back to Asriel's death, the thing from the underground running a sword through his chest...

"And after that? After all that you two did to preserve morality and justice? You decided to throw it all away!" Flowey giggled. "Bringing about the timeline of doom... bringing the Malumtale full circle..." Flowey shook his head. "... and you want to live here as if none of that ever happened?"

"Chara..." Frisk argued. "...they-"

" _Chara..._ " Flowey sneered. "...Chara didn't have the power to rewrite everything the way it should have been! Now, they're using you to complete their mission!"

"Mission?" Frisk frowned. "Asriel, what mission?"

"Asriel is dead!" Flowey snapped. "Why continue using his name when his soul is gone?" Frisk leaned forward, staring at Flowey. "Because even though your soul isn't there, that doesn't mean that you're not there. I know it's you, Asriel-"

Flowey sprouted several vines, and they lashed menacingly at Frisk. "Asriel Dreemurr is DEAD." He hissed. "Don't make me say it again..."

Frisk dodged the vines, then got off the bed. "Are you going to tell me what you meant by, 'mission'?"

Flowey cracked a grin. "Well, if you want to know what Chara and Asriel were planning... then you'd have to speak to someone who was around them, right?" Frisk thought for a minute. "Toriel?" "No, you idiot!" Flowey rolled his eyes at Frisk. "Do you thin that Chara would tell their mother about a secret plan? No... it'd have to be someone they trusted. Someone like... a best friend..." Flowey winked, and slithered away before Frisk could say anything more.

 _Best friend..._ Frisk thought. _Who would've been Chara and Asriel's best friend?_

Then it hit them. They knew exactly whom Flowey was talking about. Frisk quietly left the tower, heading to the throne room...

Frisk peeked inside, the guards were off-duty for whatever reason. They looked at Togore's throne, seeking Sans asleep on it. They walked forward, and tapped the sleeping skeleton's shoulder.

"Zzz... hmm? Oh, heya Frisk." Sans stretched his arms and yawned. "Sans, this isn't going to be easy..." Frisk said. "...but I want to know what Chara was up to before they died."

"Chara?" Sans said in an alarmed tone. "Kid, why-" "You don't need to tell me what you did." Frisk reassured him. "I just want to know what they were up to."

Sans sighed, crawling out of the throne. "Come with me. We're taking a shortcut to the core."

Once they were there, Sans walked Frisk to the structure in the center of the core. "Now, being part of an experiment with this thing has its side effects..." Sans informed Frisk. "...depending on how powerful one's soul is, they can retain the ability to move throughout a timeline the way they did while in the core."

"So that's how you can teleport." Frisk said, and Sans nodded. "Not just me. Ama, too. Although she doesn't really know it, and only does it on accident. Her soul was also stronger than mine, so she retained some visions of what she saw-"

"The seizures. Do you remember being in the core?" Sans shook his head. "Nah, my soul wasn't strong enough." "Why are you telling me this?" Frisk asked. "What do the timelines have to do with Chara's plan-"

"Based on the research that Gaster conducted..." Sans interrupted, staring at the core. "...there are an endless multitude of timelines, three of which are linear to the one we exist in now." Sans turned to Frisk. "What happened in the timeline that you lived happily in?"

"This... thing... it destroyed everyone I cared about." Frisk said quietly.

Sans nodded. "I suppose you know what the thing is... and it was Chara's mission to unleash it." "Unleash it? Why would they want to do that?" Frisk's mind was racing.

"Well... Chara had a bit of a... grudge... against other humans. Why they did, I'll never know. But they wanted to release the thing, and have it slaughter the humans." Sans said solemnly. "That's why they came here in the first place, to convince a monster to absorb their soul and free the thing."

As Frisk pondered on this, things began to slightly make more sense. Chara's whole purpose for befriending Asriel was to use his soul. That was likely the 'plan' Frisk had witnessed in a dream at the Suite Dreams hotel. But what didn't make sense was why the plan failed.

"So, Flowey told me that I'm being used to finish the plan." Frisk told Sans. "Should I-" "Don't change a thing." Sans replied. The two looked over the walkways that extended from the walls. "Flowey might just be lying, Frisk."

That seemed like something Flowey would do. But something was telling Frisk that it wasn't...

"Sans..." They asked, looking up at the skeletal hotel owner. "...how come you're remembering things? Like Gaster, and Flowey?"

Sans was silent for a long time.

"I don't know, kiddo..." he leaned over the rail of the walkway, looking down into the dark abyss. "... I don't know..."

((Hi, everyone! I'm very sorry that it took me so long to write this chapter, I've been pretty busy lately. I hope that this chapter is worth the read, and that my lack of updates hasn't driven everyone away.))


	48. Captured

As the sun rose over Tem Island, there was an operation underway. It was fairly simple: Undyne would infiltrate the island, and figure out anything that the temmies weren't telling them. Who could've known that this simple mission would end as one of the most important events in the history of Te Deum? That the ramifications of what was about to happen would ignite a war, ending with no true winners? That this was a huge piece of a puzzle that had been slowly put together over four timelines? That this was the moment Chara had waited so terribly long for...

Undyne's breath was the only thing in her ears... the constant exchange of air from around her with the air filling her lungs. Her metal footsteps weren't terribly loud as she raced across the wooden bridge to Tem Island, which was covered in a thick fog that just seemed to never go away. The island, although guarded by the most idiotic of monsters, wasn't very welcoming.

But this was her job, and she was determined to see it through.

Undyne paused to catch her breath as she stepped foot onto the island. There had been no word from Togore since yesterday evening, and he was last spotted going to the ruins with his girlfriend, Ama. One could only guess what kind of surprise or gift he was planning.

But, nevertheless, Undyne was a captain of the royal guard. She could call the shots if she wanted, and there was no one to really question her.

There would be no killing, of course. Tems, although they seemed to be a threat, were nothing more than a disillusioned group of fanatics. Undyne was really here for the head of the snake...

She waded through the weeds that covered the island, scanning around herself for temmies. It was difficult to see through the fog, and the huge trees that made up the jungle of the island were annoying obstructions. But if she couldn't see them, that probably meant that they couldn't see her.

Something landed on Undyne's metal armor, then fell to the ground. She quickly snatched it up, and recognized it as the tab to a soda can. She looked up in confusion, watching as a group of temmies vibrated in a tree above her, then were shot out by the force of soda cans on their backs.

 _Ridiculous..._ Undyne thought to herself. _...they're all ridiculous..._

Undyne slowly advanced away from them, spotting a glimmer through the trees. She walked towards it, seeing a makeshift war headquarters. It was made from slightly rusty aluminum shingles and had doors recycled from the temmies' soda cans. The captain of the royal guard rolled her eyes, then walked inside.

Her armor blended in with the metal walls, and the cloths that hung over her shoulders and the front of her armor were not easily seen in the darkness of the headquarters. Undyne slowly advanced forward, keeping her spear at the ready.

"You've got a lot of nerve showing your face here..." an angry, Scottish voice snorted from the gloom.

"ROB!" Undyne shouted, whipping her head around. She couldn't see him. "Show yourself, freak!" "Me, a freak?" Rob scoffed, his voice was closer this time. "This is coming from a one-eyed fish woman..."

Undyne resisted her inclination to touch her eyepatch, instead walking forward. "I know that there's something you're hiding from us..." Undyne taunted, keeping her head on a swivel. "...you should know that the tems are no match for the royal guard of Te Deum..."

"Be that as it may, our detemmienation will win the war." Rob responded. Undyne heard a tapping noise behind her, as if some tiny animal was trotting through the room. She stabbed with her spear, but she didn't hit anything.

"Darkness never was your favorite combat zone, was it?" Rob asked. "Of course, it was very dark in the ruins, which I suppose is why your comrade stabbed your eye out." Undyne gritted her teeth. Why was Rob trying to mess with her?

"So?" She asked, slowly feeling around for a wall. "What's your point?"

"My point?" Rob said. "Well, why exactly are you working for a former enemy?"

"I DON'T WORK FOR HIM!" Undyne shouted, hurling her spear in the direction of Rob's voice. "WE'RE CO-CAPTAINS OF THE ROYAL GUARD!"

"And yet, you feel overshadowed..." Rob continued. "...and that's why you came here on your own terms, and all alone."

The lights flashed on, revealing the ambassador of the temmies. He was standing in front of an opened cage. "Your pride will be the doom of your kind!" He snarled.

Undyne charged him, readying another spear, but Rob quickly vibrated out of the way, holding out one of his paws for Undyne to trip on. She fell into the cage, and Rob quickly slammed it shut, fastening a lock to it.

"NGAHH!" Undyne slammed into the door of the cage, and it fell forward, onto Rob. "AAAGGHH!" Rob screamed. "THIS IS NOT A DIGNIFIED WAY TO TREAT YOUR CAPTORS!"

The shouting caught the attention of several temmies, and they waddled over to the cage, flipping it off of Rob. The infuriated temmie shook his fist at Undyne.

"Don't you know a hopeless situation when you see one?" He shouted, waddling to another room. He came back with a long rope, and tied the temmies that saved him to the cage. "I feel that it's time we gave you a tour..." Rob said, and the temmies dragged the cage to the next room.

Undyne rubbed her head, trying to refocus. The room she was in now was filled with stools, a temmie atop each one. They all waved at Undyne, squeaking, "hOI!" as she was dragged past them. "This is our training ground." Rob informed Undyne, gesturing around the room. "This is the place where all us tems must go to unleash our detemmienation."

 _This guy's nuts..._ Undyne thought in her mind. _They're not even doing anything..._

The next room was smaller, with a single temmie at a workbench. Undyne watched as the tem wrote down highly complex mathematical and scientific equations on a worksheet. She frowned in confusion when she saw that the temmie was wearing a lab coat.

Rob waddled closer to the cage, saying, "Here is our weaponry development center-" " _Weaponry development center._ " The temmie at the workbench repeated in an eccentric, condescending voice. "How am I supposed to convert your detemmienation into workable machinery-"

The temmie turned around, and jumped in surprise when it saw Undyne. "Undyne?" He said, waddling to the cage. "Undyne! HAHA! I'm finally getting out of here!" The temmie sat down, looking expectantly at Undyne. "Captain of the royal guard, I order you to free me from the clutches of these insane lunatics."

Undyne rolled her eyes as the cage was dragged away. " _Undyne!_ " the temmie snapped, hopping up and down in frustration. " _Asgore will have your head when he hears what you have done to me!_ " The screaming echoed throughout the room, and Undyne couldn't help but feel like she'd heard that voice before...

"Ah, welcome to your new home!" Rob said cheerfully, as the temmies dragged the metal cage into a larger, shinier, metal cage. The only feeling in Undyne's heart was confusion as Rob put a lock on the outer cage, adding unnecessary precautions.

"If I can break out of this cage, why couldn't I break out of the bigger one?" Undyne growled. "Every deterrent counts..." Rob said, and untied the temmies that had been dragging the cage. "Now, where were we... oh, of course, what you don't know..." Rob clapped his hands together. "We know that your band of royal guards are to be upgraded with helmets _very soon..._ "

Undyne leaned forward, gripping the bars of the cage. "How do you know that?" She snarled. No one knew except her, Amabilia, and the king. "How do I know?" He chuckled. "Through my spy, of course..."

"A spy." Undyne chuckled. "Yeah, right-" "Oh, I _do_ have a spy." Rob interrupted. "And they're the best in the business."

A spark of worry ignited inside of her. If he really had a spy, what else could he be doing?

"Goodbye, Undyne..." Rob turned around to leave, then paused. "...say... where is your comrade? You know, the monster formerly known as 'The Sentinel'?"

"He's probably somewhere you can't get to him." Undyne smirked.

Rob simply nodded. "Why isn't he with you?" "Because he's on a date with his girlfriend." She sighed. "Why are you asking, you little punk?!" "Well, I was simply wondering why he wasn't here to have your back." Rob shrugged. "Maybe..." he turned around. "...maybe _he's_ the spy."

Undyne snorted. "There's no way _that's_ true." Togore was loyal, always wanting the best for his friends and family. But Rob's words had left an ugly feeling in her gut... why _had_ he not shown up last night after his date? Why did Rob know about the helmets?

And what was he meaning by _detemmienation?_


	49. Alarmed

It was an uneventful evening, and _everyone_ was alarmed over Undyne's disappearance. The co-captain of the royal guard had last been sighted on the way to Tem Island, and Frisk feared that the temmies had made good on their threat to defeat them.

They were seated beside Asgore in the throne room, with all of their friends in front of them. Togore, who had recently deferred his place as heir to the throne to Frisk, was chatting nervously with Alphys, while his fiancee Amabilia stood behind him in anxiety. Sans and Papyrus were trying to figure out exactly how this happened, and Toriel was standing next to Frisk's throne, looking at the child with worry.

"Now, everyone..." Asgore spoke up, holding his hands up to calm the group of friends. "...we must not let this awful occurrence throw us into lunacy. Undyne wouldn't want us to be worrying rather than thinking up of a solution."

Togore quit chatting with Alphys, and looked at the king. "I have commissioned a band of royal guards, we plan to infiltrate Tem Island immediately. Then we shall see-" "Careful, my son." Asgore said politely. "Action without thinking almost always ends in calamity."

"I _have_ been thinking." Togore countered. "And as captain of the royal guard, I believe it is my duty to be there for a comrade when they need me!"

"We still don't know if it was the temmies." Frisk spoke, and Togore sighed. "Who else would it be?" Looking across the flower bed, Frisk could see that this had thrown nearly everyone into a panic. _Sounds like Chara trying to mess with us..._

Sans had told Frisk not to dwell too much on Chara, despite Flowey's threat. It was the least they could do to accept his advice.

"Asgore's right." Frisk said, and everyone looked at the child. "We need to calm down, this will only get worse if we don't think rationally." "Kid's got a point." Sans said, looking at Alphys. "Do you have anything we could use to spy on them?"

"N-n-no." Alphys mumbled. "In f-fact, I think th-th-that the temmies a-are already doing s-s-some spying of t-their own."

"A spy?" Togore frowned. "They can't be that smart..." he said, looking at Ama. "...right?"

No one said anything. Frisk thought that it was particularly because if there _was_ a spy, it was likely one of the friends in this group.

As Frisk was thinking on this, the door to the throne room slowly opened. When Frisk saw who had opened it, they sighed in frustration. It was that boring blacksmith from one of the castle towers... The only thing that armadillo-like monster did was eat donuts and make the armor and weaponry of the royal guard...

 _Actually, that doesn't sound so boring..._ Frisk thought.

"Spy or no spy, we need to figure out what's the best thing to do here." Frisk said. "Is attacking the tems necessary?"

"I never said that we'd attack them." Togore argued. "I'm simply planning to sneak in there, and see if they have Undyne. And if they do..." he paused, giving Frisk a grim look. "Then we will do what we have to in order to bring her back."

There seemed to be no better solution. Asgore gave his son permission to lead a small squad to Tem Island.

As everyone filed out of the room, Frisk saw Ama quickly sneak out of Togore's view. She found Taediosum, the extremely boring blacksmith who had just entered the throne room, and asked him a question. He nodded, and slowly waddled back to wherever he had come from.

Hours later, Frisk sat at the gates to the castle, watching as Togore and his guards readied themselves. They were packing lightly, with small rations of food and light weaponry. Before they left, Ama quickly hurried over to Togore, holding something.

Togore looked at what she was holding in curiosity. "Is that...?" She set it over his head, and Frisk saw that it was a helmet. It had been perfectly designed to fit Togore's head, resting from his snout, and masking his face. The back of his head was also protected, and two short blades stuck out from the area behind his eyes. There were slits in the top of the helmet to accommodate his horns, and two, rhombus-shaped gaps for his eyes.

"Yeah... I could only get Taediosum to make yours." Ama smiled, hugging Togore. "Stay safe, okay?"

Togore nodded, and let her head rest on his shoulder for a minute. Then, he signaled to his guards, and they headed for the island.

"Are you worried?" Frisk asked Ama, and she shook her head. "Of course not. He'll be fine." The child nodded, then added, "Congratulations on the engagement! I heard he proposed last night."

Ama turned around and smiled. "Yes, he did. And it was perfect timing."

That last comment puzzled Frisk as Ama left. Why did she even think about whether or not the timing was right? It wasn't as if it had done anything to change an event's outcome... well, maybe Undyne wouldn't have been captured if Togore hadn't stayed out so late to propose, but that was probably irrelevant. Frisk shrugged, thinking that it probably had something to do with Ama's experience in the core.

"My child?" Frisk looked up to see Toriel. "Do you need anything?"

Frisk looked to the ocean, watching the reflections of the clouds crawl across the waves.

"Actually... I do." Frisk replied. "Can you go get Dr. Alphys for me?"


	50. Procrastination

"Alphys, could you hand me the pliers?" Sans asked, looking at the circuit panel to the determination extractor. Alphys hurriedly handed him a pair of pliers, and Sans went to work.

Ever since Sans had learned of Gaster's removal from the timeline, he had spent time helping Alphys with her experiments. It was a good excuse to miss all those awful meetings with the managers of his hotels, and was a fun way for him to pass the time. Gaster wasn't around to degrade Sans for his laziness, which made this job _so_ much easier.

Alphys's phone rang, and Sans kept an ear out for anything important.

"H-hello? Queen T-T-Toriel, it's an h-honor to t-t-talk with you!" Alphys said, and Sans continued listening as he cut a few unneeded wires. "Oh? F-Frisk n-n-needs to talk w-with me? I'll be over there sh-sh-shortly."

Sans watched in confusion as Alphys left the lab.

Deciding that he'd already done too much work, Sans took a shortcut to the castle, wondering what that crazy kid had gotten themself into now...

The shortcut took him to one of the towers, the blacksmith's tower. Sans looked to his left to see the blacksmith himself. "Heya." Sans greeted, and Taediosum simply held up a peace sign with his fingers. Sans looked closely at the magazine that he was reading, seeing that it was about wooden furniture. _How much more boring can a monster get?_

Sans headed to the tower that Frisk lived in, which was always smelling like butterscotch pie. The smooth slabs of grey brick that made up the tower were only visible in the staircase, since the actual area that Frisk lived in looked more like a home.

Sans stepped into the kitchen, which was the first room one would go into up one exiting the stairway. It was always filled with the latest cooking equipment for Toriel. The color of the walls were always welcoming. Sans peeked into the living room, and saw Frisk slumped in the reading chair.

"You doing okay, Frisk?" Sans asked, and Frisk looked up. "Yeah..." they said. "You're here to see why I wanted to talk to Alphys, aren't you?" "Yep." Sans responded. "It's always a big deal when the royal scientist is involved."

Frisk nodded, hugging their knees as Alphys walked into the living room. "H-hello, Frisk!" She smiled, then noticed that Sans was there as well. "Sans, what are you-" "I'm just here for support." Sans said, laying down on the floor. "So, what's the issue, kid?"

"Alphys, when you were studying determination, did you..." The child paused. "...ever come across different _types_ of determination?"

Alphys frowned in deep thought, and Sans scratched his stomach, lazily staring at the ceiling.

"N-n-no." She finally responded. "A discovery l-like that would've been a-a-a huge deal!" Walking closer, Alphys tilted her head. "W-why do you a-ask?"

"Because there are different types of determination." Frisk said, and Sans sat up. "What? How-"

"Remember the thing I told you about, Sans?" Frisk asked. "The one that slaughtered all of the humans besides me?" Sans shook his head. "Nope. You must be thinking of another timeline." "Well, it was powered by something. Not really determination, but... something like it."

"That's probably why it hasn't gotten through the barrier." Sans said. "It doesn't have pure determination, which is needed to pass through it. The barrier itself is made from Chara's soul... or whatever's left of it." Sans looked down. "The soul shattered after Asriel died, and they never found all the pieces."

 _No thanks to you..._ Sans scolded himself.

Frisk looked at Alphys. "The temmies... they say they're going to harness the power of 'detemmienation.' I think this might be something similar to what that thing that killed the humans has."

A dark feeling crept over Sans. "And if that power destroyed the humans... then it could be used to wipe us out."

Eerie silence filled the room as everyone realized what they were up against.

This whole temmie revolution... Sans thought that it was all nuts. It was ripping apart their happy life, taking away a friend, and filling everyone with despair.

He wasn't going to stand for it.

He was going to sit down, sleep a little, and try to help think up of a plan if he could.

"I-I'll see what I c-c-can find out a-a-about detemmienation." Alphys stammered, slowly walking out of the room. Her lab coat got caught on a closet door handle, and it made her trip. Sans cringed uncomfortably, and Alphys hurried to the staircase.

"Poor Alphys..." Sans shook his head. "...she's almost as awkward as Togore." At the mention of Togore, Frisk's worried face shifted into an expression of pure joy. "Did you hear about him and Ama?! Enga-" "Engaged to be married." Sans chuckled, adjusting his hat. "I was getting worried that the goofball didn't have it in him."

Sans let the warm feeling of the news dull away the fear that had been stirred in the last five minutes. He relaxed his shoulders, slowly laying back down. The skeleton closed his eyes, ready for a nap-

"SANS!"

Sans sighed and opened his eyes. Papyrus was in the walkway to the living room, and he looked very, very, irritated...

"YOU'VE BEEN SLEEPING IN MY BASEMENT FOR THREE DAYS STRAIGHT. SO WHY..." Papyrus began stomping his foot in frustration. "...DO YOU... KEEP... FORGETTING... TO CLOSE... THE FREEZER DOOR?!"

"Whoops. Sorry, bro." Sans said, grinning widely at his brother. "It must be this thick skull of mine..." "THAT IS EXACTLY WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT. YOUR SKULL IS SO THICK, THAT-" Papyrus stopped, and realization seemed to smack him in the face. "YOU JUST MADE A PUN, DIDN'T YOU?" Papyrus growled. "Sure did." Sans winked. "And I'm sure that it _tickled your funny bone-" "NNEEAAAGGH!"_ Papyrus screamed, shaking his fists in fury and running out of the living room.

Frisk laughed, which always made Sans feel better. It was good to know that he'd made someone happy. Sans rolled onto his side, seeing an open book about poetry. The page was open to _The Flower Bed_.

 _Nope._ Sans thought to himself. _Nope. Nope. Nope. Nope._ Sans wasn't going to let the thought of Asriel's funeral song to put a damper on this happy moment. Sans rolled back over, and closed his eyes. But he was already thinking about the Temvolution again, and what they were going to do without Undyne.

Suddenly, he thought of something. A plan. A way to get Undyne back if Togore wasn't able to, _and_ study the properties of determination. He almost sat up, wanting to tell Frisk.

Then again... He could always wait for Alphys to come back. The rug he was lying down on was pretty comfy.

Sans quickly drifted off to sleep, thinking that everything might be okay after all.


	51. The Prisoner

Frisk watched silently as Sans fell asleep, with a smile on their face from Papyrus's overreaction to Sans's puns. Sans had never been able to give poor Papyrus a break from his laziness and jokes.

Eventually, the only thing to be heard in the living room was a steady snore proceeding from Sans's throat. Frisk hopped out of the reading chair and got one of the blankets from Toriel's closet. They gently draped it across Sans's shoulders, then headed to the throne room.

The guards protecting the throne room let Frisk pass, and the child opened the door. Asgore was pacing nervously through the golden flowers, his normally cheerful demeanor replaced with an aura of gloom.

"What's wrong, Asgore?" Frisk asked, slowly walking over to the king. Asgore turned his head to Frisk, and he smiled for a second. "Frisk... it's always nice to speak with you." Asgore's frown quickly returned, and his eyes looked to a sword mounted on the wall. "I'm sorry for not being more welcoming. I've already lost one of the captains of my royal guard, and now I'm afraid I might lose the other... my son..."

Frisk nodded in sympathy. After restarting to this timeline, Frisk had been told that Asgore and Togore were mending their relationship after their fierce brawl in the throne room. The king had already lost one of his sons, and to lose the other must've been a dreadful thought.

"...but let's not focus on negativity at the moment." Asgore said, turning back to Frisk. "What have you come to speak to me about?"

 _RING... DING... RING... DING..._

Frisk would've recognized that sound anywhere. It was the emergency bell of the dungeon tower.

"Hide! Immediately!" Asgore commanded, racing to the back room. He ushered Frisk inside, then pulled out his trident. "Do not leave unless I say so." The king whispered, closing the door.

Frisk backed away from the door. This seemed familiar, wasn't this when-

They jumped when they backed into something, whipping their head around to see what it was. It was a boat, the one that they had used to leave the island long ago, after Togore had killed Asgore, and Flowey absorbed the human souls...

Frisk quit looking at the boat, and tiptoed towards the door. They dropped to their knees, peeking through the space underneath the door. The only thing they could see was Asgore's fuzzy feet, guarding the door from any intruders.

Suddenly, Frisk remembered what was happening. In the timeline where they'd lived in the castle, one of the prisoners had stolen the keys to the cells, then simply toss them to another cell rather than free themself. This happened every five years or so, until-

The memory of the last breakout raced through Frisk's mind, chilling them 'to the bone', as Sans would put it. They thought back more, trying to remember the name of the prisoner...

After about thirty minutes, they heard a guard open one of the throne room doors. The guard shouted, "All clear, sir!", and Asgore opened the door to let Frisk out.

"Are you alright, child?" Asgore asked, taking a knee in front of Frisk. Frisk dusted themselves off, and nodded. "Yeah, but what was-"

The door to the throne room opened, and two guards raced inside, whispering something to the king. Asgore nodded, and sent them away.

"There was a breakout, Frisk." Asgore said, putting his trident away. "Just a few petty crooks, but we believe that they were let out by-"

"Accusatus." Frisk remembered the name of the suspect. "It was Accusatus, wasn't it?"

Asgore furrowed his brow. "How do you know about Accusatus?" Frisk hesitated for a moment, then shrugged. "I just remember his name from... something..." They didn't want to say anything else, so they put on their go-to 'innocent smile.' Asgore shrugged, walking out of the throne room

Frisk followed, the story of Accusatus coming back to memory. Around thirty years ago, Accusatus had become a junior member of the royal guard, similar to Papyrus. He had quickly passed through his training sessions, and was stationed to a post at the castle.

Only days after his promotion, a plot to assassinate Asgore was uncovered, and Accusatus was accused of masterminding it. Although there was no clear reason why he would've attempted such a crime, he was convicted and placed in prison for life upon returning to the castle from an assignment.

The dungeon guards allowed Asgore and Frisk inside, and all light seemed to fade as they entered the cage-lined halls. The outlines of Te Deum's nastiest criminals slunked behind the bars, some of them racing towards the two and prying at the bars. Frisk watched in fear as they bared their teeth, slashed their claws, and screeched in fury. Frisk clung to the back of Asgore's robe, hiding in the folds of cloth as the inmates hurled threats, curses, and maniacal laughter at the king.

Asgore stopped at the end of the hall, peering into the last cell. One of the bricks in the side of this cell had been removed, allowing air to circulate from outside and into the dungeon. It also let a stream of light into the cell, and Frisk could see that it was illuminating the feet of the prisoner.

"Accusatus..." Asgore spoke, and a clanking of chains was heard from inside the cell. "...you have managed to steal the keys, have you not?"

A dark chuckle escaped the bars of the cell, and Frisk kept their eyes on Accusatus's clawed feet, which were covered in an almost golden fur. "Yes..." a gruff, sly voice spoke. "It would be ignorant of me to not find away to steal then after _twenty years_ in this cell."

"Nonetheless, you have not escaped. Nor will you ever." Asgore said, stepping closer to the cage. "Oh, but I wasn't _trying_ to escape..." Accusatus snickered. "If I was, then I would've buried my teeth into your throat thirty minutes ago..." Once again, the unnerving noise of the chains rang from inside the cell. Frisk tried blotting them out, knowing what those chains had done in a past timeline.

Accusatus chuckled again, and the dreadful chains that were holding him inside clanked with his chuckle. A movement in the light caught Frisk's eye, and they could see that Accusatus had taken a step forward. They still couldn't make out his face, but they were able to see his outfit: a dusty and dingy brown flannel, worn over a torn white shirt. He wore an equally worn-out pair of jeans, which covered the tops of his feet.

"It seems that way, considering you freed other prisoners." Asgore said. "Are you getting them to do your dirty work?" Asgore waited for a response. "Answer me, you disgrace of a royal guard!"

At the mention of his former occupation, Frisk saw a pair of eyes open, glaring at Asgore. They were an unnerving green color... not glowing, but rather reflecting the light that flowed into the cell. They looked like an animal's eyes when one shines a flashlight at them...

"You call me a disgrace... when _you_ are the one who put an innocent, loyal servant of yours in prison!" Accusatus growled, and Asgore waved his hand dismissively, walking down the hall to leave the dungeon. Frisk stayed behind, staring into Accusatus's cell.

A sniffing was heard, like that of a predator smelling for a meal. "I smell you, human..." Accusatus cackled, and his eyes settled on Frisk. "...I've heard so much about you from beyond the bars of this cell."

"Shut up." Frisk said, walking closer to the cell. "How did you get those keys?"

"Why are you so concerned?" Accusatus asked, and the chains dragged along the ground as he stepped forward. Frisk saw his face for the first time, and could see what kind of monster he was. He was distinctly lion-like, complete with a mane flowing from his head down his shoulders. Accusatus had three scars across his right cheek, one across his left eye, another running down his forehead, and yet another that climbing up the left side of his jaw. Frisk grimaced at the sight of his scars, wondering how he got them in a locked cell.

"It's difficult to miss the keys when you see them nearly every day." He said. "Every day... as the guards come into my cell. They come in here only to beat me, to let me know that I'm the most hated creature on Te Deum." His mouth curled into a smile. "You didn't think that I gave myself these scars, did you?"

Frisk sighed. They'd tell Asgore to stop the royal guards from beating Accusatus before he stole the keys again.

"Again, child... why does my plight interest you?" He bared his teeth in a hideous grin. "Is there something that you're not telling me?"

"I-I know what you're up to." Frisk stammered. "Then tell me." Accusatus snickered. "Come now, I promise that I won't tell anyone..." "You're not trying to escape. Not yet." Frisk said. "You're very, very patient. You'll steal the keys again, and then again... every three years or so. After a while, the guards will catch on, and simply start focusing on the other prisoners rather than you."

"And what then?" Accusatus asked. "What happens when the guards take their attention off of me?" Grief suddenly overtook Frisk, and they looked at the ground.

"You..." They choked to hold back a sob. "...you free yourself..." Frisk didn't dare look at Accusatus's disturbing eyes. "...and since the guards aren't paying attention to you anymore, then you go unnoticed." The chains rang out as Accusatus stepped closer, and Frisk stepped back in fear.

"You get to the throne room... and you attack Asgore." Frisk said quietly. "By that time, he's too old to defend himself." The prisoner laughed darkly, his laugh ringing louder than all the other noises of the dungeon.

"So, how do you know what I'm thinking?" Accusatus asked, his eyes glinting in the light. Frisk shook their head. "N-none of y-your-" "You weakling." He sneered at Frisk. "You're stuttering as much as that ridiculous excuse of a royal scientist..."

Frisk sniffled, and a tear fell from their eye. They hadn't had to think of Asgore's murder for years, and now it was all coming back. "B-b-but it doesn't matter. Y-you won't succeed now."

"Maybe not now." Accusatus agreed. "But I will kill the king eventually. And if you truly _do_ know what I'm thinking... Then you'll know that it's because I was innocent. Killing him is simply justice in action. Besides, _he's_ the reason that my race of monsters is extinct."

Frisk's head finally looked up, staring at Accusatus's gruff, scarred face in confusion. "What?..."

"You didn't think that the Dreemurr family was the only family that ruled the monsters, did you?" The prisoner asked.

Frisk didn't want to answer. Out of annoyance, anger, confusion, or fear, they couldn't tell. The heir to the throne simply stared into the eyes of the dangerous prisoner.

"Farewell, _Frisk_." Accusatus growled, stepping back into the darkness. "I believe that our next confrontation will take place sooner than you'd like to believe."

Frisk quickly turned around, and hurried out of the dungeon. The jeers and attempts to attack by the prisoners from behind the bars were nowhere near as horrifying as the flashback to the fate of Asgore... Frisk remembering the broken king being carried out to the front of the castle, remembering someone say that a prisoner had bludgeoned the king with the chains that had once held the prisoner in his cell...

And finally, the grisly sight of the giving, flawed, yet kind-hearted king dissolving to dust, and the cry of grief that bellowed from the throat of that timeline's next king, Asriel.


	52. The Retrieval

The team of royal guards that Togore had assembled had stealthily made it into the island of the temmies. They moved swiftly, quietly approaching the tem headquarters.

Togore gave the signal for the guards, and they kicked down the door.

"AAUGH!" One of them screamed, a temmie stuck to his face. "GET IT OFF!" The guard screeched as the temmie didn't move. "HOi!" It squeaked, waving at Togore. More temmies bounded out of the headquarters, wielding kitchen utensils, paintbrushes, and tennis balls.

The guards looked at confusion, then dove out of the way as the temmies hurled their objects. Most of them made it unscathed, but one of the guards got a tennis ball to the eye. They shouted in pain, glaring at the temmies.

"Hurry! The entrance is open!" Togore shouted, and he led the charge inside. The temmies made no attempt to stop them.

As they approached inside, Togore noticed several mounted crossbows being set up on the walls. They fired, shooting several temmies at the guards. The innocent-looking tems were quickly shaken off, and they pushed forward.

The next room held many stools, with a temmie on top of each one. They were vibrating intensely, and Togore could've sworn that the air was humming with power. These temmies didn't interfere, and so the guards raced onwards.

The next room had a simple workbench, and a temmie scientist was seated next to it. The scientist jumped, and shouted for joy when he saw the guards.

"Finally!" He cheered. "I'm going to be saved from these idiots!" Togore frowned. "You want us to save you from your own kind?" He asked.

"My own kind?!" The temmie said in disbelief. "My name is-"

 _CRASH!_

"What now?" Togore groaned, his eyes widening when he saw what had come for them. It was a giant stack of temmies, hopping forward. At the very top was Rob, the ambassador of the tems.

"I knew this was coming, Togore Dreemurr!" Rob cackled. "My spy has kept me well informed..."

"Keep moving!" Togore ordered his guards, grabbing the scientist temmie. "Let go of me, you simple-minded warrior!" The temmie barked, trying to insult him. Togore ignored him, continuing forward.

"Undyne!" He shouted, seeing her inside of a cage. The guards raced forward, slashing open the bars of the cage. Undyne stood up, smiling in relief. "What's going on, punks?" She asked. "We need to get you out!" Togore said, pointing to the ridiculous opponent that was closing in.

Undyne rolled her eye. "This place is ridiculous..."

The royal guards fled the island, Togore and Undyne bringing up the rear. Togore looked in curiosity at the wooden bridge, which was slick with some liquid. "Togore, wait!" Undyne said before he raced off with his captive temmie. "I need to tell you about the spy!" The giant stack of temmies hopped closer, Rob was wielding a torch.

"Who is it?" He asked, and Undyne had to shout over the rumble. "It's-"

Rob hurled the torch at the bridge, and the liquid caught fire immediately. Togore's mind went blank, trying to process what the heck was going on.

He raced forward, leaping over the fire. "Undyne, come on!" He shouted, and she followed him, doing a backflip over the flames-

The giant stack of temmies leaned forward, and Rob snagged Undyne's leg, pulling her back to the island.

"UNDYNE!" Togore shouted, and hurled his spear at Rob. The temmie deflected it, and flew back to Togore's feet. He watched as the flames chewed away at the bridge. "Leave her, you absolute IMBECILE!" The scientist temmie snapped, and Undyne looked down at her co-captain, nodding.

Togore reluctantly ran, following his comrades to the castle.

 **Two hours later...**

"What happened?" Asgore asked, as Togore tied up the captive.

"They recaptured Undyne." He said quietly. "Something's going on there, it's not good..." He looked over at everyone else in the room. "These temmies aren't messing around."

Sans sighed, leaning back in his chair. "Well, we've got one of them. I had been thinking earlier that we could capture Rob, and maybe we could make a trade-" "Sans, if you send me back there, SO HELP ME, I WILL REDRAW MY POSITIVE REVIEW OF YOUR WORK IN MY LABORATORY, AND SUE YOUR PATHETIC HOTEL COMPANY FOR ALL THAT IT IS WORTH!"

"Gaster?" Sans looked incredulous. Togore frowned. "Who's Gatser?"

"Me, you dimwits!" The temmie said snippily.

Sans snickered a little, then more, then let out a long laugh. "Oh... oh man, wow!" He said, wiping his eyes as he laughed. "Frisk is going to laugh so much when they see you..."

Togore frowned, turning back to Asgore. "He knew we were coming." Togore said. "Rob said that his spy let him know that we were coming to the island."

Asgore nodded, looking at Papyrus. "Have we found any updates on the spy?" "NO, SIR!" Papyrus answered, saluting the king. "OUR SPY REMAINS AS ELUSIVE AND MYSTERIOUS AS EVER!"

"Excuse me, but I can help with that." The tem... Gaster... whatever it was... spoke up. Togore looked over. "What information can you give me?" "Only that this spy was heavily involved in the making of your helmets." Gas'tem' said. "That's all I know."

Togore almost fell over. It couldn't be... but it made so much sense. It answered why the spy knew so much, why they were one step ahead, and why they were so difficult to find. It was because the spy had been right by his side the whole time.

"Togore..." Sans said. "...I think I know who he's talking about-"

"No." Togore interrupted. "No, it's not-"

"Ama." Sans finished. "It can only be her."

Togore swore, pounding the table with is fist. He stormed outside, feeling like he was about to howl in rage. He paced angrily throughout the halls of the castle, hoping that they were wrong... hoping that there must be someone else...


	53. The Accused

It had been twenty minutes since Frisk heard the news. That the attempt to rescue Undyne had failed, and that Gaster was back... sort of. But the most distressing news was the suspect of Rob the temmie's spy. Ama.

Asgore, Toriel, and Sans had agreed to interrogate her, but only with Frisk's help. "What help can I possibly give?" The child asked in confusion. "It's not like I'm stronger than any of you-" "That's not necessarily true." Sans interrupted, giving Frisk a look. They sighed, remembering that Sans knew what they'd done in the past timeline.

"Strength doesn't matter right now." Toriel said quietly. "We'd just feel better if you were with us." Frisk sighed and looked at them, the grim emotions that had been compiled by this situation emerging. It was horrible for all of them. Worst of all, Frisk was unsure of what Togore planned to do with the information.

"Well, this can't be delayed any longer." Asgore said firmly, breaking the silence. "We know where she is."

The walk to the hat shop had lost the positivity that usually accompanied Frisk when they went there. Amabilia had always been so nice, friendly, helpful... this wasn't real, was it?

Asgore solemnly opened the door, torment evident in his eyes that the one that his son loved could be a dangerous threat. The four friends walked inside, greeted by a warm welcome from Amabilia.

"It's been too long!" She said sweetly, setting down the design outlines for the royal guard's helmet. "I'm happy to see all of you again-" "Ama." Toriel stopped her. "Tell us."

Amabilia smiled in confusion. "I'm sorry, tell you what?"

"We know." Sans said. "We know that you're working for those huggable freaks at tem island. Why you did it, I don't know... but the evidence is way too incriminating."

"You think I'm the spy?" Her jaw hung open at an awkward angle, and she shook her head. "Why on earth would you-"

"Because they knew about the helmets." Frisk finally spoke. "They knew that Togore was coming for Undyne. They've been one step ahead. And the only person who could get them that information that quickly would be you."

"You were in charge of the preparations for the helmets." Asgore said. "And you told them before they were done... and Togore probably told you about the attempt to rescue Undyne, and you warned them before it took place."

Ama looked scared, her lips quivering as she heard the king speak. "No! I would never want them to hurt you! To hurt Togore! Please believe me!"

"We're past putting trust in someone's word." Sans glared at her. "Come to think of it, I actually think that I do know why you did it. The experiments with Gaster. I really don't know how you remember them, but I really don't care, either."

Ama opened her mouth to say something, but Sans held out his left hand, holding her in place.

"Sans!" Frisk said in shock. "That's not necessary-" "Necessary doesn't matter." Sans argued. "No one's getting killed when I can do something again. Not you, not Togore, not Papyrus, not anyone!"

Just as Sans finished speaking, the hollow ringing of the castle's emergency bells could be heard, and Frisk looked around in fear.

"Asgore..." They turned to the king. "...What happened?" Asgore shook his head. "I haven't the slightest idea-"

 _Ring-ding!_

The bell on the door rang, and a slow, metallic clank resonated in Frisk's ears. They turned around to see Togore the Sentinel, gripping his spear and glaring at his family.

"Mom... dad... Frisk..." he said quietly. "...please leave her alone."

A rush of horror flew through Frisk's chest, Togore had done something...

"Togore, you're supposed to be guarding the dungeon!" Asgore reprimanded him. "We told you that we would handle this!" "You don't know her." His son said, his voice holding back a wave of anger. "You don't know her the way I do. I know you're wrong, she wouldn't have done this."

"Togore, my child-" Toriel said, but he held up his hand. "Don't 'my child' me! I won't let you hurt her!"

Sans kept Amabilia in place, all the while keeping his eyes on Togore.

"Sans..." Togore warned. "Let her go, now."

"Can't take that chance, pal." Sans replied sadly. "Believe me I hate this as much as you-" "How?!" The captain of the royal guard spat at him. "How could you _possibly_ feel the way I do?!"

The alarm bells continued ringing, filling everyone with unease.

Togore pointed his spear at Sans. "Last chance..." "Kid, this isn't you!" Sans said. "You're not a killer, you're just letting your emotions get the best of you! Put the spear down." He urged.

But it was Togore. Frisk knew that full well. No matter what reason someone had for threatening the Sentinel's family, he'd always reply with swift vengeance. It was the last timeline starting all over again.

"Son, don't be rash!" Asgore commanded. "Lay down your weapon!"

Togore seemed to ready his spear, when a loud roar came from miles away.

"No..." Asgore raced outside, looking at his castle. There were people fleeing from it, and one of the royal guards had made it to the hat shop to bring news. "Sir! There's been an outbreak at the prison!" "Outbreak?" Toriel repeated. "How? The dungeon is always guarded-"

All eyes went to Togore, who lowered his spear in guilt.

"Who let them out?" Asgore demanded, and the spy cleared his throat. "The spy. Very recently, which means that the spy is still at the castle."

Frisk breathed a sigh of relief. So it wasn't Amabilia. "How many prisoners got out?" The child asked, and the guard hesitated. "O-only one."

"That's not so bad." Sans remarked, letting Ama go. Togore quickly rushed to her side, and she looked at him in a mixture of confusion and fear. The king looked down at Frisk in worry, then looked back at the guard. "Which prisoner was it?"

The guard hesitated to speak, and the deep roar sounded again from the east.

"S-sir... it's him." The guard replied in terror. "Accusatus is free."


	54. The Guilty

Togore immediately sprinted out of the hat shop, his mind running with panic. The most dangerous prisoner loose, on his watch. He'd never felt so horribly guilty, so desperate for a way out of a mess.

He made his way to the castle, which was, not surprisingly, in a panic. The guards were running everywhere, searching desperately for this prisoner, Accusatus. Togore tried to keep a cool head, walking through the halls and scanning every detail. But there was nothing, despite the fact that Accusatus had been heard roaring in triumph ten minutes ago.

Most of the guards had ignored the blacksmith's quarters, and the ones that had checked it hadn't come out, likely for a thorough examination. Togore went there, partially to check for the criminal, and partially to talk with the blacksmith about the whole issue with the spy possibly being Amabilia. _It's not really her._ He told himself. Just a misunderstanding...

"All hail, prince of Te Deum." the incredibly boring blacksmith, Taediosum, mumbled, holding up a 'peace' sign with his fingers. He was the only one to be seen in the room.

"Where are the other guards?" Togore demanded, and rather than shrugging like normal, the blacksmith smiled.

 _CLANK!_ A set of chains was expertly tossed at the handles to the doors, looping around and shutting them. Togore looked where they had come from, as something lunged out in that direction-

Togore grunted in surprise and pain as he was slammed into the ground, a set of animalistic eyes peering at him, as well as a set of jaws lined with vicious teeth gaping menacingly. It was Accusatus, free at last from his undeserved confinement. The monster wore his chains around his wrists as weapons, the metal links extending for several feet.

Togore writhed, raising his spear to strike, but Accusatus smacked it out of the way with his other chain, then growled and threw a punch at the Sentinel's head. Dizzy and disoriented, Togore felt himself begin to go limp.

"Y'know, kid, my family used to rule over the monsters, a long, long time ago." Accusatus said, his voice a deep, hoarse tone of free-flowing rage. "We were always at peace with the humans... we always were able to agree to disagree." He continued speaking, gripping Togore's throat with his clawed hand. "Of course, you boss monsters had to play second fiddle. You knew you were as strong as us. You knew you could lead the monsters as well, but none of you did a thing until your daddy came around." Togore watched as the mere thought of Asgore seemed to light a fire in the escaped prisoner's mind, and he grabbed Togore's hair and slammed his head into the ground.

"That was too slow. Let him get up and finish him quickly." Taediosum sighed, and Accusatus grinned up at the blacksmith. "There wasn't anything in our agreement about being on a timed schedule." he countered, then went back to Togore. "Yes, yes... Asgore, the last of the Knights of Te Deum, realized that the monsters could have more than what they had under my kind. To be fair, he tried being diplomatic. But he got nowhere with talking to my relatives, so he talked to the people instead." Accusatus growled. "Told them about how the humans didn't deserve half the island... which was true, but it wasn't causing us any pain. The monsters revolted, driving most of my family away to the West End. They were slaughtered by the humans."

Accusatus took a deep breath, and Togore took the opportunity to knee the lion in the gut. Accusatus stifled a roar, which would lead other guards to the room, and unleashed a furious train of punches until Togore was thoroughly numb. The Sentinel looked at Taediosum through his blurred vision.

"Agreement?" Togore mumbled in confusion, looking at the blacksmith. "Yes. Poor ol' Accusatus here had been getting the tar beaten out of him for years, and wanted some payback. His long-term plan had been foiled by that stupid human, so I let him in on my little secret-" Taediosum leaned in close, whispering, "I'm the spy."

Togore struggled again to break free, to no avail. Accusatus was strong, stronger physically than Togore, possibly even Asgore.

"You see, Togore, those Temmies are starting something. This whole 'Temvolution'? It's serious. To them. But it's really just a small ploy in the grand scheme of things." Taediosum explained. "Once the Temmies have finished their revolution, this island will burn."

"How? What? Who?" Togore couldn't think straight. Accusatus laughed and threw another punch, almost making the Sentinel black out.

"I was the one making these helmets, Togore. Yes, Ama pulled me aside to tell me a secret about them- that she had designed one specifically for you! As a present. How sweet." Taediosum droned on. "I don't talk much, so I'm taking this opportunity for all it's worth. Anyways, those helmets are a death trap. Soon enough, you'll see. Accusatus wasn't originally part of the plan, but framing Ama was. And I knew you'd try to stop them..." he paused, smiling again. "...and being the blacksmith and all, I know how to craft up something to free this poor guy."

"Why?" Togore groaned, his head still spinning. "What reason do you have to do this?" Taediosum shook his head. "I've seen things... I was chosen by the one who moves through time. They showed me what would happen, and told me that I could be given power... determination... and to be honest, it sounded a lot better than just making helmets."

Accusatus raised an eyebrow at Taediosum. "What did they feed you..." the lion sneered mockingly. Apparently these two weren't completely on the same term.

"Anyways, you're the piece we needed out of the puzzle, Sentinel. I had to make your helmet according to Ama's description, so I couldn't put in it what I'd done to the other ones." Taediosum said sadly, then shrugged. "But hey, look on the bright side- you won't get to see everything you love burn."

"You're staying in here, 'Royal Guard'." Accusatus snorted. "My family had the title right... training 'knights' rather than just guards. The knights that came before your father were loyal, trained in the old ways. Ways of peace and contentment. Then Asgore came along, and took the throne. He rechristened the knights as the Royal Guard, who of course from then onwards learned to fight." The lion stepped off of Togore, letting his unused chain rattle.

"I was one of those new Royal Guards. I was young, too young to be driven away. Your father put me in training, told me that I could protect him and his family. I had no idea what he'd done to my people. And then... then came the death of Asriel Dreemurr. What a nasty day, it was. An innocent monster slaughtered because of fear. I sympathize with that boy, I really do." Accusatus said, reflecting on the memory of the Prince of Te Deum scattering into dust in the flower bed.

"Your father, already in tense relations with the humans because of his insistence of having more of the island, waged war. I, a young Junior Royal Guard, led the charge. I broke down the gates to the castle and fought the humans back into the pit, underground. And the day that I come back from war, what do I learn?" Accusatus asked, growing more furious. "That I, a loyal subject of the king, who saw that my people's demise was not entirely his fault, who believed that he could possibly bring about good change, was accused of plotting to murder the king!"

Taediosum nodded. "The plot had been uncovered secretly almost a month earlier, but they'd found nothing. So someone falsified information to frame him." He looked at Accusatus. "Must be freeing, am I correct?"

Accusatus nodded grimly. "Yes." He said. "Very. The best part of the freedom was being able to sneak to the room of records, where they kept the file that imprisoned me." Accusatus remarked, giving a nasty grin to the blacksmith.

"A file that was made to the king, curiously, by an unassuming blacksmith." Accusatus said, in fake surprise. "How odd..."

Togore watched as Taediosum was backed into a corner, the lion flicking his wrist to release the chain that had been on the door. "I... I..." the blacksmith swallowed in fear. "...you don't know... what I will be given. The one who moves through time-"

Accusatus rushed Taediosum, swinging his arms. The chains locked around the deceitful blacksmith's throat. Togore took advantage of the open doors and stumbled out, grabbing his spear on the way. He could find more guards, regroup...

"There's no hiding from your destiny, Prince!" Accusatus laughed, the only noise that could be heard above his voice was the strangled gasps of the guilty blacksmith, growing ever more desperate until they finally silenced.


	55. The Experiment

There were a lot of uncomfortable looks being exchanged in the normally warm and inviting hat shop. Togore had rushed out to respond to the prisoner he'd unintentionally let escape, Sans, Toriel, and Asgore were all holding guilty expressions, while Amabilia had rushed to the door.

Frisk watched as Sans threw out his left arm, making the door slam before she got there.

"Really? More of that?" The angered boss monster said as she spun around to face Sans. "Even YOU just admitted it's not me, and you're still-" "We shouldn't be leaving right now." Frisk interrupted before Amabilia could finish. "There's an unknown spy out there who's gunning for all of us."

"But it's just perfectly fine for Togore to leave?!" Ama snapped again, then stopped and breathed out to calm herself. Though Amabilia was known as the gentle-natured hat shop owner, she was equally as driven and defensive as she was entrepreneurial and customer-service-oriented. Arguing with her was not easy for anyone, not even the Captain of the Royal Guard that she was engaged to.

"Listen, Ama..." Sans eventually broke the silence, his pupils never looking up from the ground. "...I got carried away. I'll admit that much. Our suspicions were legitimate, though not as grounded as we thought. You know I don't normally do that, right?" the skeleton chuckled. "I can barely flip through five channels on TV before talking Papyrus into helping me out."

Frisk smiled softly to themself. Based on what Sans had said earlier about not letting anyone else die, his actions were based on guilt over letting Asriel go to die years before. Frisk didn't know all the details of the encounter, but they did know that Sans and Asriel had been closer than one might've guessed.

The child stepped closer to the betrayed friend, wanting to take this opportunity to gain some information, closure on a subject that seemed like a poorly-skilled narrator had waited obnoxiously long to describe. "Do you remember the experiment at all?" Frisk asked Ama, who responded with silence and a headshake to indicate, 'No.'

"It would've been something traumatic." Sans spoke up again. "Gaster never found out exactly how the timelines can be seen, only that the energy he'd gotten from the magma, when combined with a strong enough soul, could view them. But we didn't know about the side effects." He insisted, while Ama began to lift her head slowly. "I don't remember the experiments. But I do remember the episodes that followed." She admitted. "They'll happen, and I won't remember what happened for a few minutes... then the memories come back. The same thing almost every time... some twisted thing coming out of the ruins and decimating everything. A guardian who was twisted into a killer."

Frisk felt a pang of guilt in their heart, remembering the timeline that Ama's flashbacks were about. How they'd driven Togore Dreemurr, the loyal, awkward guardian to madness, such madness that he denied a final chance at turning back and falling in love again with Amabilia. "That temmie Sans brought back used to be the scientist that performed the experiment. He was taken out in a way that affected all your memories of him. Except Sans, since...?" They asked, also wanting to know how Sans had remembered Gaster.

"Beats me, kid." The hotel owner shrugged. Ama looked at Frisk curiously. "I remember Gaster." She told them. "I don't remember him leaving at all. Are you saying he's not the Royal Scientist anymore?" Amabilia's question solved the problem for Frisk. "The Core." They said finally. "That's how you remember. You were both exposed to multiple timelines, which must have... kept you more grounded in this one?" Frisk suggested, and Sans seemed to agree.

"Who knows. All of that timeline stuff is messed up anyways." He muttered. "How long until we should go out there, Asgore?" Sans asked the king, who looked out the window. "The bells have stopped. Perhaps it is safe for us to venture back to the castle." Asgore replied, heading to the door to open it. He offered a forgiving smile to Amabilia, who was the first to pass through the door.

She looked up and smiled gently. All was forgiven.

Frisk watched as the king seemed to feel emboldened, straightening up as Toriel passed by next. The king offered a much wider smile, cheery and compassionate.

Toriel gave him a cold stare. All was unforgiven.

Sans winked at Frisk before heading to the back room of the hat shop, taking a shortcut. Frisk was heading towards the exit, when they felt their gut twist again, making the child lurch over. "Frisk, are you alright?" Asgore asked in concern, reaching a hand out to comfort his adopted child.

Frisk felt themselves smack the king's hand away, and felt their lips move without their control. "Out of my way, fool." a horrifyingly familiar voice came from Frisk's throat. Asgore seemed to recognize the voice too, and was equally as stunned.

Frisk tried to get control of themselves, but they were already running towards the Mountain, past Asgore. "You wanted clarification on the timelines?" The voice asked, chuckling darkly. Frisk felt a cold smile run across their lips. "Why don't I help clear things up a little?"

It was Chara. Back from their villainous hibernation, they had full control over Frisk once again.

Frisk could do nothing but watch as they entered Mount Te Deum, finding their way to Alphys's lab. The Royal Scientist was busy working with Sans, studying the newest addition to the group of comrades.

"I demand that you release me!" Gaster shouted at his former subordinates, his soul held in place by Sans's abilities. "Eh, I dunno boss." Sans said, while Alphys was holding an odd machine to the scientist-turned-temmie's throat. "I-it looks like th-the device that y-y-you mentioned is inside him." Alphys remarked. "Th-th-the one that translates h-his speech."

Frisk's mind flashed back to Chara's statements about how some people had been removed or switched from the timelines. Apparently Gaster was one of them.

"I had nothing to do with that." Chara muttered softly to relieve Frisk of their curiosity. "Heya, kiddo." Sans greeted the child, and Chara froze. "What's up?"

Chara smiled warmly, doing their best impression of Frisk that they could. "I think that I can try to do something with the core, maybe it can help us out!" They said, perfectly copying Frisk's helpfulness and wonder about what was unknown. "Heh. Go ahead, kid." Sans shrugged. "That thing probably won't affect you at all, what with all the determination you've got."

"Thanks Sans!" Chara happily skipped past the skeleton and entered the core. 'Why do you care if I know about the timelines?' Frisk asked Chara, unable to speak but still very capable of thinking. "I care because I've been trying to do something for a long time... trying to make things right." Chara sighed, opening the central hatch. "And I was so close... so close, had you and Asriel not stopped me." Chara studied the equipment, which was fairly complex, but apparently was familiar to Chara. They flipped a switch, and the hatch in the center of the core began to glow. Chara stepped inside, ignoring Frisk's overall discomfort with the situation.

Once the hatch closed, the glow that had been growing became dark. It was surprising how quickly the light went away, and Frisk was growing more and more unnerved by what was going on. But soon enough, a line became visible in the gloom. A line of white light, extending as far as they could see. Then another, and another, and another... until Frisk was surrounded by a myriad of lines, turning and twisting amongst each other, sometimes connecting or splitting.

"These are the timelines, Frisk." Chara said, walking close to one and putting their hand on it. Frisk watched as this timeline became visible, an odd timeline... in this one, monsters had been banished underground by humans. There was no island, no Malum prophecy, even Togore didn't exist.

"That one was one of my favorites." Chara chuckled. "But it turned out to be useless."

"Where's our timeline?" Frisk demanded, thinking that maybe they could somehow make a break for it, or enter the timeline to escape Chara. "Oh, right over there." Chara pointed to a set of four timelines, running parallel to each other. Three of them seemed finished, while one was still growing, still continuing. A darkness grew in the unfinished timeline, darker, darker, yet darker still. "All these timelines are because of different choices, Frisk." Chara explained. "And don't even think about trying to get away. We made a deal, and now I'm in control."

'You never said anything about controlling me!' Frisk argued, while Chara went further through the tangles of timelines. Frisk tried to get away. But they didn't know how to escape from Chara, who had retained control of Frisk from the last timeline due to their agreement. They'd just been dormant, waiting for everything to escalate. The pieces were finally falling into place. This timeline would be the one. It had to be.

The timelines that surrounded Frisk grew closer, closer, until they all connected into a single sphere of light- or darkness? No, it was... both. Somehow, light and dark existing as one. "You see that, Frisk?" Chara pointed to the sphere. "That is where it all began. No timelines, no rewrites, no turning through pages or new chapters... just one existence." Chara watched the sphere as it stayed in place, not extending or growing.

"There was only one human among the monsters back then. They had a brother, an older brother beloved by all in the place they lived. But their family shattered... leaving the brother to pick up the pieces and protect the child. They found a place where they lived, a place hidden away from everything else, so it seemed. In this place, the older brother would play games with their sibling, trying to shield them from the sadness that awaited outside. But then the games became real... the human had wanted to make a new world, and had somehow done so." Chara spoke, not caring if Frisk truly understood or not. "That was the beginning of determination. That one choice made a world that the human and their brother could write, making stories and characters to amuse themselves. But one day the older brother left, going somewhere to better themselves. To grow stronger in all they did. The bitter human, knowing that everyone they cared about seemed to leave at one point or another, closed off the world."

Frisk was getting a feeling inside. But the feeling was from Chara.

'Were you that human?' Frisk asked, and Chara paused, then smiled slyly.

"More or less." They answered, then continued. "One day, the human was forced back into the world they'd created. This world, made from determination, had changed. The older brother had somehow learned to harness his own power, and had created and twisted things in anticipation of his return. The older brother, now connected to this world, disguised himself. He led the human through the world they had once played in, and grew more and more desperate to go back to it. Upon doing so, he made a choice. A choice to create another world himself that they could play in. The older brother rearranged everything, making the first separate timeline. And this timeline was filled with new characters and stories, and therefore more new choices. And the cycle continued." Chara said bitterly. "If it weren't for that human, then the first world would not have been created. None of the pain that exists now would have happened."

'Are you trying to go back there?' Frisk asked Chara. 'To stop all of this from happening?' Chara nodded. "I'm not the only one who wants to go back. In other timelines, other characters will realize where they came from, and try to go back. Some give up, some give all their effort, but all have failed. But I am different. I have no equals in the timelines, no anagrams, no rearrangements. I walk through time, always looking to collect the power that had created these worlds. And thanks to you, Frisk, I have created a vessel to carry that power."

Frisk blinked rapidly. A vessel? Power? What power, did they mean determination?

"Ah, determination." Chara smiled, reading Frisk's thoughts. "Determination was that first world's light, stemming unknowingly from that first human. But the light could do anything, and could be chaotic. So the older brother was the darkness, confining the light's power when necessary, and eventually beginning to create on its own. It goes by a lot of names... but I prefer to call it _corruption._ "

Determination and Corruption. Light and Dark, all of these stemming from two unknown siblings.

"The souls of those two have been broken, Frisk. The human split in two as the timelines grew and required their determination to continue. And the older brother completely shattered, vainly trying to spread himself to contain his younger sibling. There was corruption almost everywhere... growing as it began to negate the determination." Chara turned back. "That feeling that you had in the last timeline... that drive to erase all that you saw? That was your determination becoming corrupted. The same thing that happened to the Sentinel. The same thing that became the monster you fear."

'The thing in the underground?' Frisk felt themself practically shout. 'It's filled with corruption? The soul of the older brother?'

"Yes, Frisk. I'm recreating the older brother, filling him with corruption. If I gather enough of his power, then use both of our determination? We will negate each other, and it will connect everything. All the determination that connects to us will be negated, and the original world will come back into being." Chara said boldly. "The Malum timeline... what you and Flowey did... it was all an experiment. And your experiment will help me to complete mine." 'What about now?' Frisk asked. 'What about the good things, Chara? All you think about is how much pain is in the timelines... what about what's good?'

Chara paused momentarily, and Frisk couldn't see what they were thinking. Then they chuckled. "Just like you to want the opposite of what I want." Chara sneered. "It's the same in every timeline that you're in."

Suddenly, the darkness lifted. The timelines were gone, and the hatch opened. Chara stepped out to go continue the progress they'd made, but felt something change in their soul. Something weighing them down...

"The gig's over, freak." Sans said, his left arm held out and holding Chara in place. "You're the reason Asriel's dead, and I'm seeing to it that no one else dies because of you."


	56. The Chase

So long. It had been so, so long.

Accusatus stepped out into the light of day, his chains dragging behind himself as he stepped out of the castle entrance. The sun had been mostly blocked in his cell, only a few small rays to give the vengeful prisoner hope. But now that hope was realized, and Accusatus's dreams could finally be realized.

Not that there weren't any obstacles, the prisoner noted as he trudged forward. The king was nowhere to be seen, and that Royal Guard Captain had slunk off while Accusatus had strangled the blacksmith. Why the blacksmith had originally faked evidence that led to Accusatus's imprisonment was unclear, but it had been avenged nonetheless. The distant crash of waves on the beach reached his ears, making Accusatus pause for a moment, breathing in the cool air. He could remember being young, watching over this place while he listened to the ocean rise and fall around the island.

But those days were over. Accusatus was taking the mountain path, searching for the young Guard who had evaded him. He could barely make out a scent on the path, occasionally following it as the trail criss-crossed through the tall grass that covered the surrounding landscape. Apparently this 'Sentinel' was smart and quick enough to make a difficult trail.

On his way, the prisoner heard light tapping, footsteps. He bared his teeth and curled his arms, the jingle of his chains bringing a focused rage to the prisoner's heart.

"Y-y-yo... you're not going anywhere!"

A small kid stepped out of the grass, shivering and cowering before the lion-like monster. Accusatus chuckled. "Another fan of the Royal guard, eh?" his gruff voice mocked, and he took a step forward. "It takes a lot more than simple determination to stand up to someone like me, little one." Accusatus could sense the child freezing up, and he continued to advance forward. "Oh, calm yourself. I haven't got a reason to hurt you, have I?" He asked, watching the child clench its teeth in terror as Accusatus leaned closer. "Have I?"

The prisoner was just toying with the child. A bystander meant nothing to Accusatus except amusement.

But then a gust of wind rushed at the prisoner's mane of hair, and something blunt struck the back of his head before he could turn around.

"Child! Get away from that prisoner!" Accusatus heard a voice ring out as he stumbled forward, then growled in annoyance. It was the co-captain of the royal guard.

The small child dashed into the grass as Accusatus kept his back turned, chuckling darkly. "So, you were just leading me here, eh?" He asked, then quickly swung his arm, the chain racing at Togore. The opponent quickly slashed his spear to block it, but the chain quickly tangled around the ornate weapon. Accusatus grinned wickedly. "You know, most monsters on this island are meaningless in what I've set out to do. But you? I suppose I could make an exception-" Accusatus yanked his arm back, and the chain snatched the spear from Togore's hands. "-What do you think? Just one extra pile of dust won't hurt-"

The prisoner got hit in the chest with a ball of fire, and staggered back in surprise as the guard retreated again. "Agh... another one?" Accusatus growled. The guard had been wearing a helmet, so he hadn't been able to tell what kind of monster he was. But it was clear now that he was a boss monster, the species that included Asgore and Toriel Dreemurr. The guard was running down the mountain path, and Accusatus snarled, a small spark of glee rising in his chest. It had been a while since he'd been on a good chase...

The lion roared and ran forward, sprinting for a minute before switching to all fours, which was unnatural even in the world of monsters. He moved swiftly, closing in on his prey as Togore would occasionally take a risky glance behind himself. Accusatus roared in anticipation as he closed the gap and pounced forward, claws and jaws bared, but the guard sidestepped and rolled to avoid the attack. The prisoner rolled as he missed, coming to a stop on his back. "You think you can run forev-" Accusatus had been starting to talk, but then noticed a really unfortunate inconvenience- the chains had tangled his legs as he'd rolled. The lion rolled his eyes and got to work as the Guard left to retrieve his spear.

Accusatus freed himself, looking back as he saw Togore lift his spear. The lion got ready to charge again, then got a whiff of another scent... another trail. Human, it had to be human. Accusatus tried to fight the urge, the instinct to hunt and destroy the humans that had been burned into him through years of training... the feeling of pride that resulted from his exploits in driving the humans underground... it was too strong. That human was Asgore's child, surely they would make an excellent bargaining chip, and if not, then a rather splendid kill. Accusatus laughed and let his thirst for blood take over, quickly dashing along the trail left by the human, much to Togore's dismay.

Chasing, this was what Accusatus lived for. Tracking something, and watching it run in terror as he came closer, knowing that a victory was at hand.

The metal clanking of the guard, who was now chasing the prisoner rather than being chased, grew more and more distant as Accusatus rose to two feet inside of the mountain, roaring fiercely and beginning to pound a metal door that blocked his way with his chains.

The door flew off of its hinges, crashing onto the metal floor and sliding forward. Accusatus was in a room, likely the one used by the stutter-prone royal scientist. And sure enough, there she was, taking notes as another monster held a human in place with some sort of magic or scientific ability. Accusatus felt a burn internally, his kind was unable to use magic of any sort. But they were unmatched in physical strength and combat, which was why they'd been chosen to lead the island until Asgore unintentionally turned the inhabitants against Accusatus's kind.

The three that stood in the room, the scientist, a skeleton, and the human, all turned their heads when they heard Accusatus enter. The scientist looked like she might die of terror, the human seemed... conflicted. Partially scared, partially amused? Odd. And the skeleton... well, Accusatus couldn't tell what he was thinking since he had a toothy smile plastered on his face.

"Heya." The skeleton said, winking at the lion. "I'm guessing that you think you're the _mane_ event." Accusatus bared his teeth and clenched his fists at the ridiculous pun, while the human cracked a smile. "Just give me the kid." Accusatus demanded, holding out his hand. "You two will go free if you comply. I have no reason to harm you." "Heh, you sound like a fair-minded person." The skeleton noted, lowering his left hand, which had been glowing with a striking blue color. As he did, the human began to back away, obviously looking for an exit.

"I am, very much so." Accusatus said to the skeleton, who had seemed to release the human for the prisoner. He crept forward, getting ready to swing his chains, when the skeleton seemed to... vanish. It couldn't be, right? He'd been there one moment, then gone the next. Accusatus raised an eyebrow, then felt strange... weighed down, almost. The prisoner was yanked off his feet, and hurled to his left. Accusatus slammed into a table of lab equipment, shattering the wooden table and sending the glass flasks and tubes flying everywhere.

"Well... if you're _really_ fair-minded, then you'd know that there's no reason for you to hurt that kid." The skeleton's laid-back voice commented, making the prisoner look up. His vision was blurry, and he felt small shards of glass digging into his skin. "So either I didn't hear you correctly... or you've been _lion_ to me." The skeleton chuckled.

Accusatus bellowed in rage and dashed after the human, who had made a break for the way that Accusatus had came through. But again, Accusatus felt his soul weighing down, like a string of sins weighing down on his neck, and was pulled backward, crashing into another wall and flopping forward. "Yeah... you're that prisoner everyone's scared about. Well, buddy, you're not going to lay a finger on the king, or his kids." the skeleton said, then extended a hand as he walked forward. "By the way, I'm Sans. Sans the skeleton-" Sans was interrupted as Accusatus swung his arm, and teleported again. Accusatus knew that he needed to be out of sight, so he raced forward, giving chase to the human again as Sans appeared. The skeleton was unable to attack before the lion had gotten out of the room, following the human.

There, by a small shop. Accusatus saw the human running for their lives to the shop that was filled with hats. His eyes focused as he ran forward, but something caught his attention. A small group of monsters, distantly heading back to the castle. One of them was wearing a golden robe, and wore an oh-so-familiar crown on his head. It was the king, the one Accusatus was truly chasing after. The lion slowed down, then stood up again, grinning wickedly. He needed to catch his breath for this one.

The human managed to hide inside the hat shop, likely finding enough cover to hide even from Accusatus. But it didn't matter. The prisoner was on the verge of getting what he'd wanted for almost thirty years, a final victory in the chase of his life.


	57. The Corruption

**Two Hours Earlier...**

Chara knew they were caught. Their plan had worked so far- trick the blacksmith again, just as they'd done so many years ago, convince the Temmie ambassador to begin a revolution, and crush Frisk's will to resist with the revelation of the timelines. While Frisk had grown quiet, obviously still completely shocked over how complicated this world truly was, the last step in Chara's plan was faced with an obstacle- Sans the Skeleton, owner of the 'Suite Dreams' hotel chain and the biggest thorn in Chara's side out of all of the recurring figures in the timeline.

"So, I'm guessing you're not completely familiar with how the core works, just how to get into it, right?" Sans guessed, his left hand keeping Chara's soul frozen in place. "Gaster built it for research, he wouldn't have made it without a way to monitor it from the outside." He winked at Chara, who had a sinking feeling in their gut. "And then there's the fact that, while you can act a lot like Frisk, you've got kind of a different voice. So your little charade back there didn't really work."

"So you know everything that I said to Frisk, don't you?" Chara asked, and Sans gave a thumbs-up with his free hand. "You betcha. Thanks for clearing up your twisted logic on killing everything." Sans said sarcastically, and Alphys piped up from behind him. "Y-y-you're wrong about c-c-corruption, you know. It's a f-f-form of determination th-th-that originated f-from monsters-" "Yeah, and it got scattered everywhere. There's nothing firmly grounded the way it used to be." Chara interrupted, then smiled darkly. "Nothing except me. I walk through time, I manipulate these timelines as I please, and I'll keep doing it until everything is back the way it used to be."

Sans just scoffed. "Try walking now." He mocked Chara, then took the human to Alphys's lab. "You did a really bad job of messing up this timeline, by the way. You weren't able to completely erase Gaster, and our memories of the fight against the whatever-it-was is just foggy instead of completely gone." Sans told Chara, who was fuming. "I would've done more if I could've!"

"Relax, kid." Sans advised Chara, stoping while Alphys brought out a small cage with a Temmie inside. "There's no reason to get frustrated when you can't change anything-" "Sans, discontinue your ridiculous monologuing!" The temmie barked in annoyance. "CHARA, EITHER RESTORE ME TO MY ORIGINAL BEING, OR SO HELP ME, I WILL-" "Gaster?" Chara frowned, instantly recognizing the Temmie's voice. They began to laugh after a moment, this was almost better than completely getting rid of the prideful royal scientist.

"Now, kid... I want you to tell me how you're still around." Sans told Chara. "And what caused you to think that using the tems to beat us was a good idea?"

Chara shrugged, thinking for a moment. Accusatus was freed, and that lion had a thirst for human blood. He'd be here soon, and Chara would leave then. "The first human... he fractured in two when the older brother created a second world." Chara began to explain. "But one half kept getting caught in these timelines, being replicated over and over and stretching out the determination further. I am the lucky half, I remained in the first world, and use determination to move through the others."

Sans nodded, and Alphys took notes. "You all have no idea how ridiculous our existence is." Chara taunted, wanting to mess with Alphys for the time being. "How many different versions of you there are... each one more of a caricature than the last. That's all we are- characters, in stories and games brought about by humanity. That's why I want to destroy everything, to bring back our meaning."

"And the Temmies?" Sans asked, trying to hold in a laugh as Gaster spouted exposition on how these findings were groundbreaking to his studies.

Chara took a long time to explain the 'Temvolution', knowing that they needed to burn the clock so they could escape. They had run through so many of the timelines and disregarded the Tems, but eventually realized that they were all filled with the corruption from the older brother. Whenever they'd start a new chapter in a timeline near them, they'd feel... something. The Tems referred to the corruption as 'detemmienation', and they were filled with it. The Temmies were just too ridiculous to realize the power they wielded, which was why Chara had overlooked them.

There was one Temmie that had a more focused concentration of corruption, to the point where he created his own personal identity- Rob, the current ambassador. While he still had some odd quirks (such as using a monotone voice when his true accent was Scottish), he was very intelligent. Chara had spoken to him as they rearranged the timeline, promising him power if he overthrew Asgore.

"And Rob wasn't the only one I manipulated." Chara smirked. "That boring blacksmith was so easy to play. I'd done it once before- talked him into framing Accusatus for when I first attempted to kill Asgore. I wanted to absorb his soul to destroy the humans, but the plain failed because of stupid Asriel-" Chara saw Asriel's former friend flinch, and felt a twisted satisfaction. "-so I tricked Asriel next. That failed, and my soul broke in this timeline, trapping me for now. Accusatus was framed to clean up my mess while he was fighting the humans for killing Asriel, and I knew then that the blacksmith could be a pawn. He was the spy, he's the one that gave Rob the information."

Sans nodded in understanding. "You wanted us to get Togore worked up. You trying to make him go nuts again?" He questioned, to which Chara responded by laughing.

"It was already done once." Chara snickered. "And thanks to Gaster over there, I had the tools to keep him in existence in that last timeline. I just had to talk Frisk into giving me control."

Sans tilted his head. "What are you-" He was interrupted as the door behind them was knocked off its hinges, an angered and hungry Accusatus standing at the doorframe.

 _Time to go._ Chara thought to themself.

 **Two Hours Later...**

Chara was hidden behind the counter of the empty hat shop, watching as Accusatus raced towards the group that had just left. Asgore, Toriel, and Amabilia weren't watching, too busy talking amongst themselves. Chara grinned with glee... until someone dashed to cut the prisoner off, wielding a spear shaped like a stretched delta rune. Chara growled angrily... the Sentinel was back. Togore Dreemurr, when not being corrupted, was a pain to have to deal with.

Suddenly Chara doubled over and rolled, feeling a pain within themself. Frisk had surged back, having taken time to collect themself, and was now fighting for control.

"You can't win." Chara gasped, shakily getting to their feet. "I may have only a fraction of my soul, but I also have part of Asriel's as well. I am more determined-"

"I won't give up!" Frisk's voice rang out, temporarily overpowering Chara, but then Chara wrestled control back.

"It's already over." Chara gritted their teeth, their mind feeling like it was on fire from the internal battle. "It was all over when they captured Undyne. You all freaked out over it. Sans had a plan, he wanted Togore to capture Rob and negotiate a trade. But Togore took Gaster, and couldn't get Rob."

'What does that have to do with this?' Frisk demanded, struggling to get out of the shop, and get to someone- Togore, Sans, anyone.

"Because you all panicked." Chara started grinning. "You all lost one of your strongest fighters, and started turning on each other instead of remembering how much you'd all gone through together. And then there was the added bonus of getting Accusatus free." Chara explained to Frisk, slouching in front of the counter. They looked out the window again, Togore and Accusatus were locked in a nasty brawl, and Asgore was coming to his son's aid.

"Doesn't matter." Chara insisted. "You panicked, and focused on Undyne and Accusatus instead of taking the Temmies seriously." They said, making Frisk realize that something horrible was about to happen. Frisk's lapse in focus allowed Chara to finally get a firm grip on Frisk, taking over for good.

"And now," Chara chuckled, rising back to their feet as Frisk began to lose hope. "You get to see the end of these timelines. You get to see this story end for good."


	58. The Love

As the small group of monsters neared the castle, Amabilia heard a bloodthirsty roar echo down the slopes of the mountain behind them. She and the other monsters in the group turned around, and saw the escaped prisoner, Accusatus, barreling towards them at full speed.

She had heard stories about this villain, how he had descended from a proud line of kings and warriors, and that he had been convicted of masterminding a plot to kill Asgore. The thought of such a horrifying monster had always chilled her.

But the stories were nothing compared to the moment she saw Togore Dreemurr block his way, brandishing his spear and intercepting the lion before it got to his parents and fiancé.

"Togore!" Amabilia shouted, terror filling her heart like smoke from a fire. The co-captain of the royal guard lowered his shoulder and charged at the last moment, taking Accusatus to the ground with him. The impact knocked Togore's spear away, and the two combatants engaged in a fistfight.

Amabilia didn't look like a fighter. She was only known as the kind, ambitious hat saleswoman that most monsters on the island viewed fondly. But her ambitious nature, especially towards the ones she loved, often resulted in her being willing to do anything to help.

She tried to run forward, but a large arm held her back. Asgore had readied his trident, and stepped in front of Ama as he raced forward to go to his son's aid. Togore and Accusatus exchanged blows, rolling and snarling at each other as they battled to gain control of the fight.

"Ama, we need to get you to the castle!" Toriel called from behind Ama's back. The hat shop owner felt a kind hand fall on her shoulder, but quickly brushed it aside. "No..." Ama insisted, shaking her head. "...running can't help people that you love."

Her attention was drawn by a cold jingle of chains, as Accusatus leapt off of Togore to avoid catching a trident in the chest. The lion bared his teeth and flicked his wrists, making the ends of his chains get embedded in the fertile ground. He grinned wickedly, goading his opponents to come forward.

Togore grabbed his spear, then went back to Asgore's side to advance on the lion, but Accusatus had planned for that. He raced forward, then jumped up. His chains remained planted firmly in the ground, allowing him to quickly yank himself forward and send a forceful kick to Asgore's face. Togore swung his spear, but missed, while the lion pinned his nemesis to the ground.

"What will hurt worse, king?" Accusatus asked, animosity dripping from his words. "To watch your only son die, or to die knowing that he shall follow?" Togore had swung his spear again, which Accusatus had again anticipated. He ducked, using Asgore's chest as a springboard to leap at Togore and knock him aside with a left hook. Accusatus chuckled as he landed, ripping his chains out of the ground.

"And you believe you're fit to rule this land?" Accusatus sneered. "When you can't save your child?"

A small fireball whizzed past the lion's face, and he looked in the direction that it came from. Amabilia stood firmly, her eyes strong as she held out her right hand.

"Give up." Ama said bluntly. "You have no chance against three of us."

Accusatus grinned and clapped his hands, impressed at her fortitude.

"Another fighter?" He asked, looking at Togore and Asgore, who were staggering to their feet. "Tell you what: I was originally going to crush both of them, but I'll spare the one with the bad haircut." Accusatus told Ama, nodding in Togore's direction. "Just give me the old man... and then? I don't care. Imprison me, execute me. I will have done my job-"

"No deal." Ama responded, lobbing another sphere of flames at Accusatus, who sighed and dodged.

"Very well then-" The lion swung his arm at the king, who'd lowered his trident in an attempt to get Amabilia to accept the prisoner's offer. The chain that extended from Accusatus's wrist cracked Asgore over the head, knocking his crown off and sending the king flailing onto his side.

Togore lunged at Accusatus, who backed up. Ama charged forward, Toriel's pleas fading while she ran across the soft grass that covered the landscape. There was no way she was letting these two people who'd done so much for her die. Never.

Accusatus began laughing, encouraging Amabilia to bring it on as he used his chains to ward off the Sentinel. Amabilia waited until she was close, watching as the lion began to make an arm movement that would swing the chain at her. She ducked, sliding past the lion on the ground before swinging her foot at Accusatus's ankle.

While it was a near perfect hit, Accusatus only stumbled forward lightly, like someone had hit him with a pillow. He proceeded to ignore Ama completely, concentrating his efforts on Togore while Asgore wavered in and out of consciousness. Togore was constantly backpedaling, spinning his spear to stop the oncoming chains as the sun began to set on the horizon. Amabilia took a quick glance at Asgore, who was surprisingly being tended to by Toriel.

While Accusatus continued his attacks, Amabilia would zip in and around him, throwing punches to the lion's jaw and neck. They couldn't stop him, but they would leave Accusatus temporarily stunned. If she could get a better hit, they'd have a chance.

Togore took notice of her efforts, waiting calmly... Amabilia and her fiancé exchanged a glance, and a plan passed between the two. Without speaking, they knew what was about to happen.

Ama quickly got in front of the vengeful opponent, lowering her shoulder and ramming into his chest while Togore made an impressive leap in the air. Accusatus growled in absolute fury and lunged at Amabilia, his incredibly strong hands grabbing her neck and began to strangle her.

"Your love makes you a fool." Accusatus taunted as Ama's breath began to fail. "To think that you could best me-"

Togore landed on Accusatus's shoulders, and the lion had been so distracted by Amabilia that he'd forgotten about the Sentinel. Togore used his weight to twist himself, pulling the criminal down and burying Accusatus's face in the dirt. The lion roared and was about to get up, but then the blade of a spear was pressed to his throat. Togore and Ama had taken him down.

Ama gasped desperately, air filling her lungs again as she gave a sputtering cough. Then she felt an odd tingling in her hands... _No, not now..._ Ama thought as she felt herself begin to convulse. She dropped down, pain searing her nerves as the side effects from the core kicked in.

"Ama!" Togore threw a quick punch to the back of Accusatus's head, and the lion seemed to go limp, apparently unconscious. The Sentinel rushed forward and caught Ama before she hit the ground.

 _"The earth is scorched... the terrible power has been nurtured..."_ Ama spoke in an almost chant-like voice, her eyes glowing as the visions of the Scorched-Earth Route flew through her mind. Only this time, they were clearer somehow.

And she saw the Malum-Bringer's face. The face she'd believed and trusted in so much.

Ama's fit began to end as Togore held her, gently rubbing her shoulder to help her calm down. Ama eventually grew quiet, not realizing what had happened for a few moments. Then the memories came flooding back, and her head snapped up to look at Togore.

"You..." She said softly, disbelief filling her eyes. Ama shook herself out of Togore's hold, a single image flashing through her mind: Togore plunging his spear into her, and grinning as he turned Ama's pleas to stop back around on her.

"Ama?" Togore asked again, holding a hand out. "Are you alri-" "You're it!" Ama shouted, stepping away. "You're the thing I keep seeing that kills everyone!"

Togore blinked, equally as incredulous as Amabilia. "What... how... why would I do that?" "I don't know!" Amabilia shook her head quickly, growing angrier and more betrayed by the second. "But you did it. You killed everything. And I-"

She bit her lip and looked down, pain coursing through her heart. But this wasn't a physical pain, this was something that cut deeper. That would stay longer. "There's no way that I would do that!" Togore insisted, putting his spear on the ground and sliding it towards her. And it sounded honest. It felt honest. But it wasn't, because it had happened.

Ama shook her head, her shoulders rising and falling with her panicked breath. "You're a risk." She said, trying to stay strong. But inside she felt broken. Ama picked up the spear and tossed it to her side, over where the prisoner lay.

"You're the Malum-Bringer, Togore." Ama said, her voice growing extremely soft as she looked down. The grass had always seemed so lush and vibrant, but now all she could think about was how cold it felt underneath her feet. "Maybe not now. But at some point, in some world like this one... you're the villian." Ama told him, breathing and closing her eyes.

"But I love you now." Togore told her, pain lacing each word he spoke. "I love you now, and there's no changing that. You say that I was bad... how would you know? Did I hurt you?" Togore asked Ama, who nodded, wracked with grief. "But you didn't fight me, did you?" Togore followed up his first question, making Amabilia look up. "Because you knew it was me. You remembered then, like you remember now. You wouldn't let go of your hopes and dreams for us..." Togore paused. "...and I'm not the villain now." He told her. "Maybe I did screw up. Maybe I was something awful, okay? I'm not innocent."

The Sentinel looked down before burying his face in his hands. "I'm angry sometimes. I've known that it might get out of hand. It's something that won't go away... not unless I'm around you." He said, and Ama looked up as he heard an unusual noise, unusual to be heard from Togore at least.

Sobbing.

"I don't want to hurt you now, I promise. But... if you... you can't... live with me, then..." Togore didn't look up. And Ama didn't look down. Which was a shame, since she should've.

Togore's sobbing was cut off as he choked in pain, a spear punching through his side. Accusatus had faked his unconsciousness, and had taken the spear that Ama had tossed at him before crawling stealthily, at a distance, while the two were distracted.

And then the lion had hurled the weapon at the Sentinel.

Togore fell forward on his knees, covering his face again with his hands. But he didn't blame Ama, who felt instant regret and pain coursing through her soul. He didn't take this moment to degrade her, even though Ama began to realize that being in a timeline where Togore wasn't insane was the best she could've hoped for. That this might've been the one time she could truly love him.

"I still love you." He insisted, slowly sinking further and further to the ground. Accusatus chuckled and kicked him forward.

"Like I said... love makes you foolish." The lion laughed, swinging his chains in circles on either side of him as he advanced toward the grieving Amabilia, whose spirit had finally been broken...


	59. The Overlooked

p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 14.399999618530273px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;"Frisk didn't think they could scream any louder as the spear went through their adoptive brother. What was so horrible was that they could not truly make a noise, since Chara was still in control, snickering darkly to themselves as the Sentinel went down./p  
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 14.399999618530273px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;""You'll see why that's ironic later." Chara promised Frisk, who was still limited to viewing this event, and to suffer through the emotions that came with it. Frisk could do nothing as Chara carefully stepped out of the hat shop, smiling as the afternoon breeze ruffled their hair. "Like I said earlier, Frisk, I don't exist in different forms over all of these timelines. Despite everything, I'm still me. I found this worthless timeline, and I knew it would be the one to fix everything."/p  
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 14.399999618530273px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;"Frisk didn't want to listen to Chara gloat. They wanted to go save Amabilia, who was crying too much now to notice Accusatus advancing slowly. "The thing that destroyed the humans was a gathering of corruption. Of countless times I had defeated YOU in other timelines, taking your soul and using it to raze everything when I let you rewrite. Then your soul would become more powerful as it crushed your friends, losing the determination and drawing in the corruption./p  
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 14.399999618530273px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;""I almost had myself convinced that I'd win in the second timeline you made. But Asriel saved you all at the last minute. And the corruption I had gathered was negated again. So some progress was made. The more that determination and corruption cancel each other, the more that these timelines begin to fade."/p  
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 14.399999618530273px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;"'The darkness in the timeline.' Frisk realized. It wasn't a growth of corruption, it was the loss of the power that created the light that made up the timeline./p  
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 14.399999618530273px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;""Very good, Frisk!" Chara said mockingly. "You're starting to get a knack for this stuff." They taunted, as Frisk watched Toriel intervene before Accusatus got to Ama. Frisk's heart sank as the lion knocked Toriel off her feet with one of his chains./p  
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 14.399999618530273px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;""So I had to find a way to start over. And when you did the third timeline? I realized that I had overlooked Togore the whole time." Chara continued talking as the two boss monsters tried their hardest to keep Accusatus away from Asgore, who was knocked out. "The first time I gathered corruption, it was by using the essence of the Delta Monsters, the ones that used to rule the island." Chara noted, observing Accusatus as the lion fought off the final obstacles in the way of his revenge. "That deal we made? What you thought would be your way back to a 'happy ending?' It was what I needed. I took over and began putting things back together, starting with erasing as much of Asriel and Gaster's memory as I could, so that there wouldn't be any obstacles." Chara sighed at the end of their sentence. "But Gaster had shattered, so part of him latched onto a temmie in the timeline."/p  
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 14.399999618530273px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;"While the fight up ahead was in a standoff, Chara headed back inside to pass the time. Frisk felt like Chara had finished already, and they were just waiting for something to happen. Frisk watched as their hands lifted off a hat from a stand and placed it on their head, then Chara looked at their reflection in the mirror. "It's me, Chara!" they taunted Frisk, who was feeling more hopeless than ever. "No one remembered fighting Asriel. No one remembered Gaster. But I wasn't done. All that determination you and Togore had gathered together- and I need to compliment you, Frisk, because you not only took the determination from the monsters, you actually sucked it out of the fabric of this timeline when Togore set off the volcano." Chara chuckled, impressed. "As I was saying, all that corruption was in my hands. All it needed was a host, a vessel. And I chose the nearest pile of dust that I could find."/p  
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 14.399999618530273px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;"The next realization took Frisk a little longer, but then it all fit together. "Togore." Frisk and Chara said together./p  
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 14.399999618530273px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;""So now the power you were most afraid of has been given the mind of one of the truly scariest things I've seen in any timeline." Chara told Frisk, trying on another hat. "While the first collection of corruption didn't have the older brother's memory yet, it knew it had to destroy and contain the determination. Now it has Togore's mind, and he's at the point where anything that moves- living or not- is prey." Chara seemed dissatisfied with the hat, and tossed it aside. "And he's stuck underground. That barrier is still too strong. But it won't be for long." Chara laughed./p  
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 14.399999618530273px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;""Last time I had to wait for the corruption to corrupt the barrier, since I knew that setting it loose immediately wouldn't work. Humans and monsters would've worked together to stop it, and having it destroy the humans would destroy more determination, even though none of those humans had as much determination as you." Chara quit trying on hats and stepped outside. The sun was touching the ocean now, casting a warm glow over the waves as it continued to sink./p  
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 14.399999618530273px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;""But the barrier is about to be destroyed." Chara told Frisk. "And you know full well that Togore will not be stopped when he is unleashed." Frisk watched helplessly as Accusatus thrashed Amabilia and Toriel, constantly sweeping their feet out from under them. The lion was just toying with them now./p  
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 14.399999618530273px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;"Then something sprang up in front of Frisk, and Chara backed up. Frisk felt their body hit something as they backed up, and turned around. It was a wall of large bones, circling them on all sides and being spaced too close to escape. "Sans!" Chara shouted in frustration, looking around, their eyes eventually falling on the monster that had imprisoned them. Frisk couldn't help but smile./p  
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 14.399999618530273px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;""NYE-HEH-HEH!" Papyrus laughed, flexing his muscle-less arms. "THE GREAT PAPYRUS HAS CAPTURED THE EVIL BEING THAT HAS POSSESSED HIS BEST FRIEND!" "Yeah, and you captured your 'best friend' too, you moron!" Chara snapped, baring their teeth. "OH. WELL, AT LEAST YOU WON'T BE ABLE TO DO ANYTHING TO HURT FRISK NOW!" Papyrus said, lowering his arms. "AND NOW, I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, SHALL CAPTURE THE INFAMOUS PRISONER THAT ESCAPED EARLIER THIS MORNING!" Chara howled with laughter as Frisk begged Papyrus not to go, knowing that he was no match for Accusatus. But their words could not be heard, and Papyrus took off, laughing heroically./p  
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 14.399999618530273px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;""Wow. Well... I was getting really bored, but this will do." Chara chuckled, sitting cross-legged as they forced Frisk to watch what happened next./p  
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 14.399999618530273px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;"Not only did Papyrus charge towards a physically and mentally stronger opponent, he blew any cover he had by shouting, "PREPARE YOURSELF, PRISONER! THE NEWEST MEMBER OF THE ROYAL GUARD IS ABOUT TO DRAG YOU BACK TO THE MOST LOW-BUDGET CELL IN OUR PRISON!" Accusatus turned around, raising an eyebrow in confusion, then chuckled. But Papyrus raised his hand, and a bone shot out of the ground and cracked Accusatus in the jaw. He staggered back, shaking his head and howling in pain. Frisk tried screaming again, trying to tell Papyrus to get away. But Chara was still in control, and needed some amusement before the end of the timeline./p  
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 14.399999618530273px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;"Accusatus had dispatched Toriel and Ama, so he began his advance on Papyrus, swinging the chains at his sides. Papyrus fired a bone from behind, and it knocked the lion onto his face. Embarassed, the lion dashed forward and swiped his hand at Papyrus, but the skeleton was quick enough to dodge. Papyrus sent a set of three bones from the side, but Accusatus knocked them away with his chains. "You have no idea what you're doing." Accusatus sneered, but he had to catch his breath. He'd fought Asgore, Togore, Ama, and Toriel without a break, and he figured that he could afford one now against the weakest opponent he'd fought all day./p  
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 14.399999618530273px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;""NYE-HEH-HEH! YOU JUST MADE A MISTAKE, PRISONER!" Papyrus declared, raising his hands in apparent victory. "BECAUSE YOU'RE PAUSING TO CATCH A BREATH... I CAN PAUSE TO CATCH MY BREATH, TOO!" Chara busted out laughing again as Papyrus took a break that he absolutely did not need, and Accusatus simply rolled his eyes. "Sure. Sure. Have fun." The lion told him, his lips quivering as he held in a laugh./p  
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 14.399999618530273px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;""NOW, IT'S TIME FOR ME TO MAKE AN ATTACK!" Papyrus said, then stood awkwardly for a moment. "I... UM... I'VE NEVER FOUGHT SO LONG WITHOUT MY BROTHER TO SUPPORT ME." Papyrus admitted. "WOULD YOU MIND IF WE WAITED FOR HIM TO SHOW UP SO THAT I CAN FIGHT YOU TO THE ABSOLUTE BEST OF MY ABILITY?" Accusatus roared and swiped his arm, making Papyrus screech in surprise and duck. "OH. WELL... I GUESS I'LL FIGURE OUT SOMETHING ON MY OWN." He shrugged, sending a few more bones at Accusatus, all of which the prisoner splintered with his chains./p  
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 14.399999618530273px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;""I've met so many foolish people today..." Accusatus snarled. "...but you have got to be the biggest fool by far." Frisk held their breath as the lion swung at Papyrus again, and was able to hit the skeleton in the shoulder this time and send him cartwheeling several yards./p  
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 14.399999618530273px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;""WOWIE! THAT WAS A SKILLFUL ATTACK, PRISONER!" Papyrus said as he got to his feet. "WOULD YOU MIND SHOWING IT TO ME AGAIN, SO THAT I CAN STUDY YOUR FIGHTING TECHNIQUE?" Accusatus laughed lightly and shrugged. "Sure thing, guard." He swiped quickly and knocked Papyrus back again, while Frisk pleaded and begged for this to end./p  
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 14.399999618530273px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;"Papyrus gingerly got up, obviously very hurt. "W-WELL... IT SEEMS LIKE... YOU HAVE QUITE THE ATTACK STYLE." He noted, putting his hands on his knees. "BUT, THERE'S STILL ONE THING YOU'RE OVERLOOKING..." Accusatus laughed again, crossing his arms. "Really? What would that be?"/p  
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 14.399999618530273px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;"A small emding!/em was heard, and Accusatus's expression changed from condescending to shocked as he felt something change within him./p  
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 14.399999618530273px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;""...MY emSPECIAL ATTACK/em!" Papyrus finished, making Accusatus's soul turn blue as Frisk cheered, and Chara just stared in fury./p  
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 14.399999618530273px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;"Bones flew at the lion from all sides, and he couldn't do anything. Papyrus had obviously done some training with his special attack, because it held Accusatus in place rather than simply weigh the lion down. The only thing that the prisoner could move was his face, growing more and more enraged as the bones hit him over and over again./p  
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 14.399999618530273px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;""NYE-HEH-HEH-HEH-HEH!" Papyrus laughed. "FIGHTING HAS NEVER BEEN SO MUCH FUN!" He said happily, and Frisk noticed Asgore begin to get to his feet. 'Yes!' Frisk shouted at the same time that Chara hissed, "No!"/p  
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 14.399999618530273px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;"Asgore cracked his trident over the prisoner's head, sending him toppling forward on his face. Accusatus did not get up, lying in a pained and stunned daze over being defeated./p  
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 14.399999618530273px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;"Amabilia had rushed to Togore with Toriel, holding his hand and weeping for him to stay as the Sentinel struggled to stay alive. A few guards had managed to get to them, and carried Togore back to the castle to heal him. Frisk felt so much joy, so much relief, they'd won. They'd beaten Accusatus./p  
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 14.399999618530273px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;""You're forgetting something..." Chara said slyly, and everyone looked up as they heard a rumbling. Far off, the fog-covered island of the Temmies was shaking, a strange darkness emitting from something on its coastline. All the trouble caused by Accusatus had caused everyone- Frisk included- to overlook the Temvolution that had been taking place./p  
p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 14.399999618530273px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;""Well... it's been nice knowing you, Frisk." Chara sighed, leaning their back against one of the bones that made up their cage. "I'd keep your eyes open if I were you. Well, technically I emam/em you, so that shouldn't be a problem. " They chuckled./p 


	60. The Temvolution

As Undyne looked through the dark room she was being held in, she wondered if anyone was coming after her. If Togore had been able to realize that the blacksmith was Rob's spy, and if this Temvolution really was anything to worry about at all.

"I presume that you are enjoying your captivity..." A distinctly Scottish voice echoed in the room, and Undyne sighed. Rob could be seen advancing, flanked on all four sides by his loyal Temmie guards. "Not particularly, PUNK." Undyne snapped, looking up. She had been put in another cage (which was being held in two more cages as added 'precautions'), and placed back in the room that she had been rescued from.

"Do not complain, Undyne." Rob said smugly as the four Temmies waddled around to the back of the cage, and began to push it forward. "You are about to be witness to the greatest event of your miserable life... the Temvolution."

Undyne chuckled to herself. "How do you take yourself seriously?" She asked. "I mean, do you see what you're working with here?" Undyne jammed her thumb over her shoulder, pointing at the group of Tems.

"hOI!" They all squeaked in a cheerful tone. "im TEMMIE!"

Rob nodded as he trotted in front of the advancing cage. "You have no idea of the power we wield... but your ignorance shall be cured shortly." Rob promised as the cage was pushed to the edge of the island, the calm sound of the tide adding an oddly peaceful touch to this moment.

Surrounding Undyne were all of the island's Tems, all humming with some sort of power. It was so unreal, that Undyne didn't respond. She thought that she was dreaming, there was no way that Tems had any actual strength or power whatsoever. But it was real, and the Temmies all looked into the three cages at Undyne, saying in unison, "HoI!" Rob waddled close to the cages, and Undyne slowly advanced towards him. "What do you want with me, punk?" Undyne asked through gritted teeth.

"I want to take what the one who moves through time told me to take-" Rob's arm shot in before Undyne could react, removing her eyepatch before his paw covered her socket. Never had a Temmie's unmoving face seemed so chilling to the captain of the royal guard. "-your DETERMINATION." Rob finished, and he began to hum with power as well, and Undyne writhed as she felt something leave her. Some hidden, small amount of strength that shouldn't have been there, that had been stored away in her over costant cycles of the timelines repeating and branching off, a mere shard of the determination of the original human that made these timelines, yet a shard powerful enough to keep her stronger than most. Undyne collapsed as the determination left her, and Rob, too, fell off the bars of the cage that he'd been clinging to. The ambassador of the Temmies gasped for air, turning onto his side as he tried to recover from having his detemmienation negated and destroyed along with Undyne's determination.

"What... why..." Undyne asked, her voice hoarse and low as she struggled to lift her head. Rob was helped to his feet by the other Temmies, and shook in pain before sitting on his back legs, looking out over the expanse of water that separated Tem Island from Te Deum.

"Tems..." Rob gasped. "...start the Temvolution."

The Temmies all squeaked, "YEssiR!" and stretched their arms out towards their ambassador, and they all began to slowly transfer their power to Rob. Undyne watched in shock as Rob began to darken... growing more and more corrupted until he seemed to be made out of shadow.

As Rob got back on his feet, the Temmies all began to cheer. Undyne could do nothing as Rob raised his arms, and the island began shaking. A large crevasse formed around the shoreline, circling Tem Island as the shaking knocked down all of the poorly-constructed houses made by the Tems. Then, to Undyne's further disbelief, the island began to rise, slowly going into the air until it seemed to be a mile above the ocean.

Rob slung his arms forward, in a throwing motion, as the power to rewrite what would normally happen to this island coursed through him, and Tem Island was hurled towards the East End of Te Deum. Towards the Castle. Towards all of Undyne's friends...

Undyne shut her eye, the only thought being of how ridiculous this was. That the Temmies' plan had been to defeat the monsters by throwing the island at them. Her hands gripped the bars of her cage tightly, as the island continued to race towards everyone that she cared about...

 _Ding!_

That small noise made Undyne open her eye, seeing that the island was now being held in place. Rob howled as he saw that his soul had been turned blue, immobilizing him and all the detemmienation he had. Undyne grinned, seeing the monster who'd stopped him, the monster that had appeared just in time to save the day.

"Nope..." Sans grunted, the strain of keeping the island at bay showing as sweat poured down the sides of his skull. "...not today, weirdo." He told Rob, and was too focused on holding his soul in place to notice Undyne. She looked around, seeing the Dreemurr family nearby, along with Papyrus, a random lion-monster that had chains linked to his wrists, and Amabilia. Frisk was some distance away at the hat shop, but still would not have survived the impact if Sans hadn't stopped the island.

Sans swiped his arm to the left, sending the island careening towards the Ruins, which no monster had lived in since Toriel had gone back to the castle to be with Frisk and Togore.

Chaos ensued, Rob shrieking in infuriation and anguish, the Temmies continuing to cheer since they did not know they'd lost, and nearly everything being tossed around as the world felt like it was revolving at a pace Undyne had never felt before. Her eye closed as she sighed, a peaceful feeling coming over her. _Yeah, I'm kinda done for here._ Undyne thought to herself. _But everyone else is okay. That's my job._

Undyne felt a small smile cross her face right before Tem Island slammed into the Ruins, completely crushing the already collapsing stronghold.

* * *

Frisk watched in astonishment as the island was hurled away, then winced as it crashed into the West side of the island and promptly destroyed the Ruins. They breathed a sigh of relief, looking through the bars of their own cage that Papyrus had made to stop Chara. 'Looks like you lost.' Frisk told Chara smugly, but Chara just chuckled, still in nearly total control of Frisk.

"No." They said with a smile. "I won." Chara responded plainly, gazing at the destroyed ruins.

Frisk was confused, they hadn't been killed. The Temmies had failed, and were probably all dead now. Why would Chara have won if they were focused on the Temmies' success?

"I never wanted them to succeed." Chara told Frisk in response to their thoughts. "Just to get enough power to negate that barrier."

Frisk felt a like the ground had been yanked from under them as they realized that the barrier- the only thing keeping the monster that Chara had created underground- was now gone.

And all of the corruption that Chara had been gathering over other timelines now had the mind of an insane Togore Dreemurr, ready to bring true doom to this timeline and destroy both corruption and determination forever.


	61. Well, That Took Long Enough

No immediate fallout from the Temvolution. Just as planned.

Chara's breathing picked up steadily, the apprehension and excitement of their plan building inside their soul. Or, rather, the soul they had bonded with and taken over, that had belonged to Frisk. But Frisk wasn't in control of this timeline anymore. There would be no more rewriting. Only turning the pages.

While Chara desperately wanted to watch this timeline become unravelled, they were trapped in a cage of bones made by the younger of the two skeleton brothers. Chara sighed, knowing that they would have to wait for an opening.

Surprisingly, Togore Dreemurr had survived his wound, and was currently being carried back to the castle by several royal guards as the sun continued to sink below the horizon.

 _How come they're not dead?_ Chara thought with a frown. The blacksmith was supposed to have set off the trap for the helmets of all members of the royal guard, excluding Togore. Chara grumbled in frustration, figuring that the blacksmith had perished in the chaos that surrounded the recent prison outbreak. Chara would have to set off the helmet mechanisms on their own.

"NYE-HEH-HEH!" The truimphant laugh of Chara's second least-favorite skeleton rang out. Papyrus and Sans were walking towards Chara's makeshift prison. The demented human gritted their teeth at the prideful mannerisms of the junior royal guard, as well as the unbuttoned shirt and decieving calmness of his older brother. "Looks like you're stuck there, freak." Sans remarked with a wink. "Don't worry, Papyrus and I are about to let you out... I've got a bit of a _bone_ to pick with you."

"THAT'S RIGHT, MYSTERIOUS TIME-TRAVELLER THAT HAS POSSESSED FRISK! WE HAVE A- _SANS! TELL ME THAT YOU DID NOT JUST MAKE A PUN IN SUCH A SERIOUS SITUATION?_ " Papyrus growled in frustration, earning a chuckle out of Sans. "Sure did. But don't let it get under your skin."

As Papyrus shrieked hysterically, Chara smiled through the bones that made up their cage. "You sure do love to reuse jokes huh?" They taunted the hotel-owning skeleton. "That was always one of Asriel's favorites..." Chara mockingly reminisced, watching the unease settle into Sans's pupils. Before Papyrus had come along, Asriel was the closest thing to a younger brother that Sans had. Chara knew that Sans blamed himself for allowing Asriel to go to the humans, an event that led to the prince's death.

"Enough talk. We're gonna get you out of Frisk. The determination extractor can still redirect souls to the essence of monsters- another detail you neglected when you reset everything." Sans's left eye flashed, casting a bright blue light on Chara as their soul was weighed down. "Yep... you're gonna be used to resurrect someone, and your soul will lose its memories. Nice knowing ya, kid-"

"Resurrect someone... like Undyne?" Chara asked. "Undyne... who was on that island that you just tossed into the ruins?" Sans's hand lowered, abd Chara's soul was released as realization settled in the skeleton's mind. "Indirect kills still count in this world, idiot... but cheer up! You can tell her all about how you killed her after you bring her back, right?"

Papyrus had fallen silent, looking at Sans with hesitation. "S-S-SANS?" he asked. "IS THE TIME-TRAVELLER TELLING THE TRUTH? DID YOU... KILL..." Papyrus couldn't finish his statement, and Sans was oblivious to everything as a crushing weight was added to his already burdened soul.

 _What's the point in taunting him?_ The voice of Frisk asked inside Chara's mind. "Easy. I spoke to three beings as I rewrote the timeline... beings that I knew would be needed to get major players out of the way."

 _Rob, Taediosum, and..._ Frisk spoke, referring to the late ambassador of the Temmies along with the royal blacksmith, respectively. They both were obvious pawns in the story Chara was trying to write.

 _And... Accusatus?_ Frisk finished, guessing that the unconcious prisoner laying a hundred feet away was the final pawn. After all, he had almost killed Togore, Asgore, Toriel, and Amabilia.

"Good guess, but the lion wasn't in the original script." Chara snickered. Because the third pawn had popped up behind the skeletons. A pawn that had not been seen much in this storyline, a pawn that had waited for the perfect moment to strike.

Sans was so grieved, that he hadn't been listening to Chara's conversation with Frisk. But his closed eyes snapped open as he felt something small get buried into his back.

"SANS?" Papyrus shouted in confusion as Sans went to his knees, a small hole in his back. Blood was seeping out of it, uncharacteristic of monsters. Chara laughed as they felt Frisk scream for what must've been the hundreth time today, and the assailant behind Sans laughed as well.

"Hee hee hee!" Flowey the flower rasped, glaring at the coughing skeleton. "Looks like the one-hit-wonder is out of the way, Chara!" He told his best friend with glee. Several vines lashed out from the ground, pulling a bone to the side to allow Chara to escape. "Get the guards next!" Flowey advised with a dark grin as Chara raced across the grass. "That blacksmith wasn't able to finish the job!"

Chara ignored the fading cries of Papyrus, as well as the alarmed shouts of Toriel and Asgore, who were running to the sides of their comrades. Chara ran so fast, that they were able to catch up with the guards that were carrying their injured leader to the castle. "Frisk!" one of the guards called out, unaware that Frisk wasn't in control of themself. "Help us carry your-" she was interrupted as Chara barelled into her armored leg, causing the guard to stumble and trip. The other guards all lost their footing as Chara raced by, and they all fell into a pile on top of Togore.

The castle was still settling down from the escape of Accusatus, as evidenced by the guards not being in their normal positions. Chara was able to make their way to the blacksmith's room, and was greeted by a pile of dust in the middle of the room. So the lion had figured out who had gotten him imprisoned. Of course, Chara had planned that event years ago. They had planned to kill Asgore, then frame it on the humans before they were being driven underground. But it hadn't worked, and so Chara had convinced Taediosum to frame the lion (who had been away at war) of orchestrating the crime. The process took too long, and Chara had been killed before Accusatus was finally imprisoned.

But all of that was in the past now. Chara searched the blacksmith's quarters until they found the mechanism- a remote with a switch currently set to the 'dormant' position. Chara set the switch to 'corrupt', and listened as the hustle and bustle of the guards that were just getting back into their positions went silent. They beamed at the eerie feeling, and felt Frisk grow quiet.

"Glad that you're seeing how hopeless this all is." Chara sneered, stepping outside. Piles of dust were covering the floor, with a helmet on top of each one. "I hope you're able to let go of what you were holding onto, Frisk. It's for the best."


	62. Why Do You Continue?

Toriel was not normally one to give in to fear. But the exhaustion of the scuffle with Accusatus had made her fragile, and that feeling caused Toriel to absolutely shatter as Sans, a longtime family friend, went to his knees with a wound in his back.

The goat mother shouted hysterically, not noticing her adopted child dash away towards the castle, or that mysterious flower that had just attacked Sans. She raced forward as another scream came to her ears... the grieved cry of Papyrus, who couldnt think straight due to the circumstances. Toriel's instincts kicked in, and she hugged Papyrus and held him away from his brother.

"Papyrus-" Toriel choked out, trying to think of something comforting. But how could you comfort someone who was about to lose such a distinct part of their life?

Asgore had also made his way over, just as Sans fell flat on his face, sprawled out and unmoving. The king's eyes flicked up to his ex-wife, who did not dare return his gaze as she tried to console Papyrus.

Darkness had fallen over the island. The sun had finally gone below the horizon, no longer casting streaks of wonderous colors across the sky. In all this unknown, all of the darkness, Toriel felt fear trickling into her soul. How had all of these horrible events happened so quickly? Who was doing this to them? Something told Toriel that this may possibly be only a taste of what was in store, a foreshadowing of misery that she did not want to endure again.

Papyrus's sobs eventually lessened, and Asgore took a knee to roll Sans over before the skeleton could disperse into dust.

"Watch the hat, will ya?" Sans's voice pierced the silence, making everyone's jaws drop. The skeleton coughed as his eyes peeked open. "Messing it up would just _cap_ off this bad day." Sans chuckled and coughed again.

"Sans?!" Toriel was shocked. Everyone knew that Sans could only take one hit. And he was bleeding... Toriel didn't want to say it out loud in front of Papyrus, but Sans should be dead. "SANS! YOU SCARED US ALL!" Papyrus shouted, picking his brother up in a hug. "WE ALL THOUGHT YOU WERE DONE FOR!" The force of the hug led to sputtered choking noises from Sans, who still hugged Papyrus back.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm okay." Sans assured everyone. "But something to heal me would be really great right now." Toriel pried Sans from Papyrus's arms, and carefully set him on the ground. "Sans... you shouldn't be alive." She whispered to him softly, and the skeleton shrugged in reply. "Yeah. But I'm still kicking. Why are you complaining, did yoh really want me to bite the dust?" Sans teased with a wink.

"Oh, goodness no, Sans! I would never wish such a terrible fate upon any of my friends! That would be such a horrid thing to do! I'm very sorry that I made you feel that way!" Toriel apologized frantically, and Sans sat awkwardly for a moment.

"Uh..." He glanced one way, then the other. "...I was just kidding, Tori. Y'know, trying to tickle everyone's funny bone." Sans chuckled, and Toriel laughed in response. "Oh... haha, yes, of course Sans!"

"SANS! NEAR-DEATH EXPERIENCES ARE NO TIME FOR PUNS!" Papyrys scolded his older brother, who only chuckled more. "You're just embarassed because you're too scared to one-up me." Sans replied, making Papyrus shake his fists in frustration. "THAT IS A LIE IF I HAVE EVER HEARD ONE BEFORE! THE GREAT PAPYRUS FEARS NOTHING!" He insisted.

"Of course you're scared." Sans winked at his brother. "You don't have the guts."

After another shrill scream of frustration, Papyrus agreed to help Toriel carry Sans to Gaster's lab to figure out how Sans had survived Flowey's attack. Asgore headed towards the castle to check on Frisk while the three friends made their way towards the mountain.

"Sans, what was that flower?" Toriel asked. The skeleton's eyes seemed uneasy, and he sighed before answering. "It was a project of Dr. Alphys." Sans answered. "She took one of the golden flowers from the castle and injected it with determination. That flower came to life."

Toriel bit her lip, remembering what had happened at the flower bed. Her child had died, his dust scattering across the flowers and his soul shattering apart. Toriel thought on this as they walked to Gaster's lab. Why was Sans so nervous?

"I thought that determination needed memories to bring somethimg to life." Toriel remembered, and Sans looked down, guilt staining his pupils.

A wave of shock went through Toriel, while Papyrus absentmindedly hummed 'The Flower Bed' to himself. The queen looked back at where they'd been, where the flower had been... but Flowey was gone. That couldn't be... no, it wasn't her son. Asriel was the island's example of pacifism and peace. He would never have done harm to Sans, who had befriended Asriel years ago.

Toriel was silent as the injured Sans was placed on a table in the lab. She looked at the floor as Alphys carried over a small pet cage with Gaster (who was still a temmie) inside. "H-he should b-b-be dead!" Alphys remarked as she studied his wound. "You're even too lazy to die properly, you bloke." Gaster snorted from his cage. The former scientist was obviously displeased with being held captive.

Alphys grabbed a small device that was labelled 'Check'. "Th-this allows us t-t-to observe the strength and h-health of a monster." Alphys explained, and quickly scanned Sans with it. "O-oh, dear!" Alphys gasped as the results came onto the small screen. Toriel looked up from the ground and raised an eyebrow at the information.

Sans. Level of Violence, 10

50 Health Points.

17 Attack Points.

17 Defense Points.

"Why... why is he stronger?" Toriel asked slowly, looking at Sans. The hotel owner grimaced. "Undyne. The Temmies. Indirect kills... they increase one's Level of Violence and strengthen determination or corruption in a monster." Sans mumbled, rolling onto his side. "I think I'm going to throw up."

Toriel wouldn't stand for that. She wouldn't watch someone like Sans degrade themself. She put a comforting hand on his shoulder amd smiled kindly at him.

"You were trying to keep us safe." Toriel assured him. "We all love you, Sans. You have a good heart, and you have far too much on your plate already to add another grievance." The pain in Sans's eyes subsided slightly, and he glanced back at Toriel. "Thanks... would you mind taking Papyrus home?" He asked softly. Toriel nodded, and Papyrus gave his brother one last hug. "GET WELL SOON, BROTHER!" He said loudly. "YOU HAVE A MEETING WITH YOUR HOTEL EMPLOYEES AT TWO NEXT MONDAY!" Sans groaned as he remembered, he hated those meetings.

"Farewell, Sans." Toriel whispered before leading Papyrus out of the lab, and walking along the mountain path towards the skeleton's house.

 _He has seen the flower bed, as he came from the west. In a time of darkest dread, he found a place to rest._

Toriel held back tears as the final line from Asriel's funeral song circled through her mind. Her poor child... was Asriel truly alive again? She didn't blame Sans for not telling her, but it was still awful to think about.

"TORIEL?" Papyrus sounded concerned. "TORIEL, HAVE YOU GOTTEN SOMETHING IN YOUR EYES?" The queen flinched, but quickly put on an innocent smile. "No, Papyrus. I am fine, do not worry."

But there was much to worry about. So, so, much.


	63. Yes, I'm Talking to YOU

Far from the individual tragedies that were occuring on the island's east end, the rubble of the stronghold formerly known as 'The Ruins' slowly began to be shifted. Something was rising from underneath the destruction, driven by an urge to erase unlike anything seen in any timelines created by the two brothers...

An arm smashed its way out of the debris. Similarly to Rob the Temmie in his final moments, it seemed to be made of pure darkness. The arm pushed the pieces of brick and concrete out of the way until its owner could rise, planting his heavy feet upon a toppled wall.

It was Togore Dreemurr, the fallen sentinel. Not the awkward, recently-engaged guard of this timeline, but rather the counterpart from the smouldering remains of the scorched earth timeline. A huge slash, left from his last encounter with Frisk, could be seen on the shadowy fabric that covered his armor, and on the armor itself. An unnerving and dark ooze flowed slowly from the injury and fell on the pieces of the destroyed tower, slowly starting to consume and erase their existence. It was corruption in its physical form, which had the power to erase anything created by its polar opposite, human determination.

The resurrected Malum-Bringer scanned the island, which was covered by a sheet of shadows due to the night sky. None of this place seemed familiar to him. Due to the properties of corruption and determination, the memories of the last timeline (as well of a few of its characters) had been erased by Chara. This new timeline was a death trap, a poor reconstruction of Frisk's rewrites intended to consume all timelines.

Togore Dreemurr slowly stepped forward, the cold wind scattering his short and unkempt hair. Although he was still in control of himself, he could feel a small voice inside his mind, urging him to destroy even more of what he saw than he already wanted to. This voice, a fragmented manifestation of the mysterious 'older brother' had never regained full conciousness until now. Through Togore's eyes, the long-forgotten knight of the first timeline could see how his beloved younger sibling's power had gotten out of hand. Tragic as it sounded, he had to destroy his sibling.

The Malum-Bringer was in no rush at the moment. Togore had put distance between himself and the ruins, and was now heading towards a tall building labelled, 'Suite Dreams Hotel'.

Rather than open the door, Togore swiped his dark spear and sliced it off the hinges. He stepped on the door as he walked inside, and the contact he made caused the door to slowly dissolve away, erased from the timeline. "Welcome to the Suite Dreams Hotel" A monster that stood behind the front desk greeted Togore, making him look up. "We hope your dreams are as sweet as our-" One slash of that awful spear, and the voice was cut short.

Every room was checked for signs of life. Nothing was left untouched, it all had to be erased. Malum, the Latin word for 'doom', was truly at hand now.

Togore left the hotel once it had been thoroughly examined. The experience points and levels of violence (both just expressions of how much determination or corruption that one has accrued) continued to grow inside of him. The door that Togore had stepped on earlier was completely gone now. In fact, the hotel was currently being erased, with growing holes left by corruption's touch now eating away at the building.

This revelation caused Togore to look back at the West end of the island. The ruins had been erased, too.

It was all so simple. So, so simple. Togore continued, the burning urge to erase everything driving him forward.

* * *

Back in the scorched earth timeline, the six human souls, the last collections of determination that remained, had broken free from their confinement. They knew what was going on, how Chara had become corrupted, and that the human was bent on helping the older brother complete his goal.

The souls floated in a rotating circle, scanning the once golden flower bed, now a bed of ash and debris. Although the souls could not remember what their life had been like in the first timeline, when all determination had been weilded by a single human, they knew that the process of creating timelines was what they were meant for. The older brother's plan could not come to fruition.

 _There._

Amidst all the destruction, the souls harvested a single pile of ash. It was all that remained of a golden flower, one that Togore Dreemurr had burned. They took the ash with them as they left the ruined castle. On their way towards Mount Te Deum, they spotted the hat shop, burnt to a crisp by the wrath of the Malum-bringer. The souls stopped for a moment, considering if they should use Amabilia for their plans instead.

But Amabilia's essence was not here. All monsters that had been inside Dr. Gaster's experiment- the core- would not multiply with the timelines created by Frisk. Instead, the small amount of determination they possessed would follow the human as they rewrote, giving them new life in the next timeline. Their memories, however, would not be complete.

The six souls pressed onwards, going along the path that led to Dr. Gaster's lab. Inside was the machine they had searched for.

In two timelines that were directly connected to this one, the determination extractor had been used to resurrect the same being, more or less. Now the monster would be revived for a third time, but not out of scientific curiosity or brotherly love. This tims, it would be out of pure hope that doom could be prevented.

The pile of ash was placed befor ethe determination extractor, which had been modified by Dr. Gaster to have the ability to transfer determined souls to a monster's essence, bringing them back to life. Gaster didn't have a specific reason in mind when he modified it, other than simply because it was possible. As the souls turned the extractor on, the machine began to hum, extending the two prongs on its front to the remains of the flower. The souls then entered the machine, and promptly lost their individual memories.

But as their own stories were erased, another memory rose to take their place- a manifestation of the first determined human. The six souls became one, and were given to the ash.

A breath could be heard. The ash swirled into a pillar, forming a body around the soul as the breathing continued. Furry hands and feet began to form, as well as an outfit normally worn by one belonging to the Dreemurr family. Green vines began to form, getting tangled around the monster's body. Golden petals would sprout here and there, but neither the vines nor the petals would be able to impede this monster from moving normally, as he once had.

The pillar finally coalesced into Asriel Dreemurr, who gasped for air and clutched his chest. He stumbled backwards, emotional pain digging into his mind from the memories of cruelty as Flowey the flower.

 _'There is no time for remorse.'_ A voice rang in his mind. The younger sibling, who had created the first timeline, was awake. _'You are the Spero-bringer, chosen to destroy the Malum-bringer.'_

Asriel didn't bother complaining about the excess of exposition that this voice was giving. How could he complain when he'd done far worse than simply overexplain a situation?

 _'You are weighed down... many sins weigh upon your neck, Spero-bringer-'_ "Why am I back?" Asriel managed to ask, his voice nothing more than a regretful choke as he sat on the ground, hugging his legs to his chest and hiding his face in his knees. Asriel had been resurrected in such a way that gave him the appearance of a fully-grown boss monster, complete with ram-like horns that curled over his floppy ears. But he still cried like an eight-year old. There was nothing but self-hatred and remorse springing the tears from his eyes.

 _'As Malum means doom in latin, Spero likewise means hope.'_ The younger sibling's consciousness told Asriel. _'While you may have no hope for yourself, it is your duty to give others hope.'_

Asriel wiped his eyes, his lips fixed in a frown as he let out a shaky breath. "Is there a way for me to never hurt anyone again?" _'Yes.'_ the voice replied quickly. _'You and your enemy will be erased completely. You'll never be able to do wrong again because you won't exist.'_

Asriel swallowed nervously. Death in and of itself was a scary concept, but total annihilation? He didn't want to be erased! He wanted to apologize to everyone, to do good in this world...

"Selfish." Asriel told hinself, lowering his head. "I'm being selfish by wanting a second chance. I don't deserve the chance to apologize..." he could feel the ancient human's conciousness become disturbed. "...much less forgiveness."

The voice was quiet for a long time. This whole situation was ironic to it. But Asriel had to go if the timelines were to continue. Giving the prince any hope of personal redemption would throw this last-ditch effort into jeopardy. _'Will you help me in this plan? Will you give others the chance to fulfill their hopes and dreams, Spero-bringer?'_

Asriel shuddered at the morbid desire he felt to listen. To give up his hope and just be done with his story. But if people needed help... and if he truly would never hurt anyone ever again...

"Okay." Asriel replied quietly. "I'll do this. But promise that everyone will be safe from me forever!"

 _'You have my word.'_

The Spero-bringer rose to his feet, a white cloak appearing over his tattered robes. Asriel drew the hood over his head and slowly walked away, listening as the voice directed him to the core.


	64. With Every Chapter You Read

Chara's long walk to the West End had come to an end. Frisk had seen everything being eaten away by the advance of the Malum-bringer, like fire consuming pages in a book. The human that had lasted so long and been so determined was now powerless as Chara calmly stepped inside the Sandbar, and took a seat in one of the booths.

"It's dark out, isn't it Frisk?" Chara taunted, looking at the night sky through one of the restaurant's windows. "Every monster on this island is about to head to bed... they won't even know that they're dying when he reaches them." Frisk had no response. There was simply no way to answer Chara's mocking remarks.

"I'm glad you're being so quiet again, Frisk." Chara sighed. "It makes this so much easier. You're saving both of us a lot of headache before we die-" Chara wad interrupted by a noise coming from the back room of the Sandbar. The door was being jostled, and the doorknob turned frantically. Someone was definitely trying to get out.

"Oh, that must be Togore. The corrupted one, of course." Chara said happily, and got up to open the door. "Looks like this is our last chapter-" The human unlocked the door and it flew open, a monster staggering out and knocking the human down on accident. "Oh! Frisk, it's you!" A sweet voice spoke, making Chara look up. It was Amabilia, who had unknowingly teleported to the back room after Accusatus had beaten her.

"Frisk can't speak at the moment." Chara snickered, and got to their feet. "Please leave a message."

Amabilia frowned, disturbed at the unfamiliar voice that had spilled from her friend's throat. "Frisk...?" She trailed off, stepping back as Chara took a step forward. "...Frisk, what's the matter with-" Amabilia fell silent as Chara pulled an unused steak knife from the counter that Grillby would normally serve food from.

"Amabilia... what does your name mean in Latin again?" Chara asked with a knowing smile, carefully running one finger along the blade of the knife to make sure it was still sharp. They got no response from the boss monster.

Chara turned their attention to Ama's ring. It was shaped like a flower, with a glowing stone in the center. That stone was a fragment of Chara and Asriel's combined soul.

Reading Chara's thoughts, Frisk gave one final push to wrestle control of themself back. Chara winced and put a hand to their temple until Frisk's soul tired. "I'm going to need your ring." Chara told Amabilia, pointing the knife at Ama's hand. "Believe me when I say that it won't matter if you're wearing it or not in a few minutes."

Rather than give in or back away, as Chara expected, Ama stood her ground, an orb of fire appearing in her hand.

"Oh, so brave." Chara snickered, taking a step forward. "I don't know what on earth you are... but you're going to get out of Frisk immediately." Ama finally spoke. Chara just laughed.

"Get out or what? You'll lob some fire and burn your friend?" Chara gestured at the body they were currently possessing. "Do any of you monsters think things through-" Ama shut Chara up, tossing the fire at the human's stomach. Chara was tossed off their feet, and hurled into one of the booths. Frisk had felt the impact, but knew that it had to be done despite the pain.

"Frisk was more determined to live and do good than almost anyone I know." Ama retorted. "If you're using Frisk's body... then in my mind that means that they're not alive anymore."

 _Wrong guess, but I'll take it._ Frisk thought, and Chara gritted their teeth when they realized that a fight was likely about to ensue. The human got up and hurled their knife. The blade spun past Ama's head as she dodged, clipping a few white hairs off her cheek before the knife embedded itself in a wall. "I suppose you're done trying to fight." The monster said as she took a careful step forward.

"I will never be done." Chara snorted, stepping back to maintain a safe distance. "Not as long as fools like you keep fighting against me." The human's eyes flicked back to the engagement ring on Amabilia's finger. If Chara could get that, then they wouldn't have to worry about being killed by something other than the advancing Malum-bringer. If another monster killed Chara, they could absorb the human's overly-determined soul and take control of the timeline. That would throw all of Chara's plan into turmoil.

Ama continued walking, without a trace of fear or doubt in her eyes. It reminded Chara of Undyne, who was physically stronger than Ama. For her part, the boss monster was more calculated with her efforts than Undyne. Chara continued looking for a way out as they backed up, then jumped as their back scraped against a wall. Ama had them cornered.

"This will all start over again if you kill me." Chara spat as Ama drew her hand back, fire forming in the space between her fingers. "You know a decent amount about timelines... you should know how dangerous that fiance of yours is." They spoke slowly, waiting for their remark to cause Ama to pause out of hurt.

But it didn't.

"I know the risk that runs with him being around. What's more is that I'm almost certain that I'm keeping his evil side at bay." Amabilia replied confidently. The prospect of now having to rewrite everything made Chara's blood boil (technically Frisk's blood, but Chara was in control nontheless).

Frisk braced themselves as they sensed that Chara was out of options. If Amabilia could kill Chara, then this nightmare might come to an end-

 _CRRRACK!_

Frisk's sudden burst of hope dissipated as a crack formed in the wall. Half of a dark spear was protruding from the gap, and slowly was drawn back to its owner. Two sets of fingers emerged from within this gap and began to pry apart the material of the wall, until they had made a hole large enough for their shadowy owner to step through.

Chara marvelled at their creation, a seven-foot tall being wreathed from darkness, with eyes that looked hollow and unmoving. Frisk thought that the Malum-bringer's eyes looked like eye sockets in a skull. Then their attention was drawn to his chest. The tattered and shadowy fabric had a large tear, which matched a slash in Togore's armor directly behind it. The final battle of the scorched-earth route flashed through Frisk's mind, reminding the human of how their final, determined slash with the knife had cleaved through their former friend's chest like butter.

"Malum-bringer!" Chara announced, smiling widely and holding their arms out. "Consume Frisk and myself to end this cycle of rewrites!" The human let go of the knife, and it clattered to the ground.

Togore seemed to oblige without a second thought, rearing his dark weapon back and hurling it at Chara's head. But Amabilia had heard Chara's order, which meant that somehow, Frisk was still in there. She barely batted the spear away with her hand, wincing as it grazed one of her fingers and shattered the stone on her engagement ring.

Chara immediately doubled over, clutching their chest as one of the last two pieces of their soul was destroyed. Frisk sensed Chara's once stone-cold grip on their soul beginning to waver, returning control to Frisk.

They were filled with determination.

"Ama, let's go!" Frisk cried out urgently, turning to their friend. But Amabilia was on her knees, clutching the hand that had been grazed by the spear. Such a small injury, but it had grown, corrupting the determination that made up her form and starting to make her dissolve like everything else.

Frisk's face couldn't express the pain any more. But Ama looked over her shoulder at the human, issuing a final, stern warning: " _GO!_ "

Togore let out a deep growl, advancing forward and grabbing Amabilia by the snout. He threw her aside like an empty cup. The monster crashed into the top of the counter and tumbled over the side. Tears stung Frisk's eyes as the hat shop owner's feet could be seen, unmoving. The rest of Ama was hidden behind the four-foot tall counter.

Frisk turned on their heels and sprinted through the exit without looking back. There wasn't really a destination in mind, only the goal to keep distance between themself and their resurrected foe. _Why run? What purpose does prolonging the inevitable serve?_ Chara taunted, despite being regulated to the same position Frisk had been in. _Amabilia is dead. Sans is dead. Undyne is dead. You're up against an enemy that you can't even touch without being doomed._

"I'm... running..." Frisk said in-between gasps for air as they sprinted ."Because my... friend... wanted me to." Ama had held onto her hope even in the face of total annihilation. It was the least that Frisk could do to follow her example. And though neither Frisk nor Chara knew it, Sans was still alive.

And the hope-bringer was on his way.


	65. The Ending Draws Closer

"How _are you still alive?_

 _"Are you even listening?"_

 _"They'll hand the king over for sure now."_

 _"Wake up... WAKE UP!"_

A large hand violently shoved Togore's shoulder, making his eyes slowly open. The injured Sentinel groaned softly, looking down at the wound in his side. The spear had been removed. Togore looked down further, seeing chains locked around his ankles. He was being dragged by someone. Something...

"Lousy prince." Accusatus snarled in his face. The prisoner had woken up when Sans was attacked, and had found Togore alone amidst several helmets and piles of dust. The helmets had some sort of needle in them, which dripped with a nasty black ooze. The needle had absorbed the souls of the royal guards, and corrupted them. Only the essence was left of the monsters.

Togore's head hit a rock as the lion dragged him, blurring his vision again and jarrimg his thoughts. "I'm not going to kill you, brat. I'm sick of having to deal with your ridiculous friends. They won't even think about attacking while I'm holding you hostage."

As Togore's vision cleared again, he saw that he was being dragged into the mountain. Accusatus was going to find a place to hide and keep Togore injured, to prevent another fight. "C...c...coward..." The Sentinel mumbled, and Accusatus just chuckled. The lion twisted the chains, causing Togore to be flipped onto his face.

"If I was a coward then I wouldn't have beaten you and your family senseless." Accusatus sneered. "I'm just doing what I can to make things right. You understand that, right?" He asked, but Togore didn't feel like responding. Accusatus snorted, opening one of the doors inside the volcano.

"Stay silent if you wish, but trust me when I say that it will help you to-" A bright light flashed in the eyes of both the prisoner and the guard. Applause began to roar, cheers and chanting erupting from the area in front of them, and it went silent as a highly-dramatic voice cried out, " _OH MY GOOOOOOOSH!_ "

The spotlight that had been cast on Togore and Accusatus shifted, shining on a rectangular robot with a microphone. It was Mettaton, whom Togore knew about since Amabilia loved watching some of his shows. "Uh... greeetings." Togore said, the audience falling quiet when they noticed his awkward demeanor. "Hey... I'm kind of seriously wounded. Would you be able to spare me some banda-" "You two have arrived at the most _convenient_ time imaginable!" The robot interrupted, and gestured to a large screen on the wall behind them. Togore mumbled in pain and looked at the board, which read 'Surprise Sitcom'.

"Normally I choose two audience members and spring a random sitcom script on them, but now I don't even have to bother!" The robot moved closer, rolling on a wheel at its base as the crowd chanted, "MTT! MTT!"

Mettaton turned his attention back to Togore."Hmm... medieval, but... with a hint of dystopian? I absolutely ADORE your style!" He remarked, making Togore raise an eyebrow. "What?"

"And YOU..." the robot turned to Accusatus, observing his tattered jeans and dingy flannel. "...hmm... quite grungy... what angle are you going for?" Mettaton asked, and Accusatus just stared blankly in confusion.

"Nonetheless, you two are about to take part in a FANTASTIC Mettaton Show- say it out loud!" The robot said to his fans.

"Surprise Sitcom!" the crowd cheered, and Mettaton bowed as a large curtain fell over the stage, blocking the spotlight and plunging Togore and Accusatus back into darkness. The next few minutes were very loud, as set producers quickly began putting unseen objects onto the stage. "Alright, listen up, because we're only going to tell you this once: you two are both playing teenage brothers staying with their father for the weekend-" "That doesn't even sound entertaining!" Togore complained before having something pulled over his head. He tried to take it off, but then he felt one of his floppy ears get pulled up, and something was put into his earhole.

"Let go of me you- HEY!" Accusatus roared as he, too, was swarmed by the costume designers, who proceeded to put an unseen outfit on the prisoner in the dark. "-As I was saying, you two are going to have to act like you hate each other-" "I ALREADY hate him!" "-oh, that's great acting right there!" The set director gave Accusatus a thumbs-up, despite it being too dark to see. "Alright, we go live in three... two... one-"

The curtain lifted, revealing everything that had been added to the stage. The walls were a warm yellow color. A comfortable sofa was in the middle of the stage, with a small table set in front of it. There was a staircase in the back left corner. Aside from all the pictures of Mettaton that adorned the walls, it looked a lot like Togore's old home, back in the ruins.

A bittetsweet feeling rose in Togore's throat, making his hands clench and his shoulders stiffen as he tried not to embarass himself on live television. He had apparently failed, because the audience was laughing loudly. Togore blinked and looked away to the set directors that were offstage. Behind them were several cameras with a live recording of the show, and Togore was... what was he wearing?!

His head had a childish pinwheel hat set on top of his hair, and there was a bright blue shirt pulled over his armor. "Hey, look at the audience, kid!" A static voice said in his ear. Togore's hand went to his ear, figuring they had given him a small earpiece. Togore's side and gut were killing him, and he went down on one knee. Although Accusatus was not in physical pain, his pride had certainly been hurt.

The violent prisoner had a torn leather jacket over his flannel, along with those odd 'slide shoes' that didn't seem like either sandals or flip flops. But the most dramatic change was how his mane of hair had been spiked up into a mohawk. The set directors had molded his image into that of a laid-back, rebellious teenager.

Togore lightened up slightly, cracking a smile at his foe. The lion saw the camera and shouted in frustration, trying to fix his hair as the audience laughed harder.

"Stick to the script, kid! You're the younger sibling, and you accidentally ripped ypur brother's shirt! The ratings depend om it!" The scriptwriter spoke from the earpiece, and Togore raised an eyebrow. _Ratings?_

Then Togore's attention was drawn back to the board that had read 'Surprise Sitcom' earlier. Now it was a chart, showing the individual aspects of the show's current ratings. So far, the 'humor' and 'style' lines had gone up, and the 'violence' rating line was starting to rise quickly.

 _Why violence? There's nothing-_

Togore's train of thought was interrupted as he felt something slam into his shoulder. He flipped from the impact, rolling over the small table in front of the couch. The audience cheered as Accusatus reared back one of his hands to fling the metal chain again at Togore, who narrowly dodged by rolling off the table.

"Come on, kid! Make up a story about how you ripped his shirt! The audience will get bored of the violence soon!" Togore heard from the earpirce. The scriptwriter must've taken a moment to speak with Accusatus too, because the lion was frantically trying to get something out of his ear. "Hey... uh... you!" Togore spotted a member of the audience that was holding a plate with an untouched piece of MTT face steak on it. "Can I have that, please? I need healing-" The audience immediately began to boo, and the scriptwriter began to yell and scream through the earpiece.

"No breaking the fourth wall!" One audience member yelled, and threw a plate of spaghetti at the royal guard's face.

"Uh... thank you?" Togore replied, quickly eating as much of the spaghetti as he could. Slowly, the pain in his midsection began to fade, and the external wounds from being impaled began to close as well.

Gritting his teeth, the Sentinel got up. Several strands of spaghetti dangled from his horns, and his pinwheel hat had tomato sauce on it. Togore whipped around quickly, swinging his right arm at the distracted prisoner. His fist smashed right between Accusatus's eyes, sending the lion tumbling into the reading chair. The violence ratings went back up, but only slightly.

"Oh, my! What are you two DOING?" Mettaton's voice echoed through the small auditorium, causing the audience to cheer and clap once again. The robot was in his humanoid Ex form, slowly walking down the stairs and flipping his hair. "No wonder your mother dropped you two off here..."

The audience laughed as Mettaton stuck to the script, pulling a small chair from a closet. "If you two don't behave, then I'm going to put you in timeout!"

Togore raised an eyebrow. Timeout did not seem like an appropriate punishment for fighting.

"Listen to this script, knucklehead!" Togore winced as the earpiece blared. "Ask him how he's going to fit two children into one chair!" A faint smile came over Togore's face. That sounded somewhat like a response one would hear in a sitcom.

"So... um... father..." Togore cleared his throat, beginning to act as Mettaton raised his eyebrow. "...what plan do you intend on using to fit both of us into one chair?"

Mettaton cringed at the phrasing of the question. A few audience members laughed awkwardly, while the rest stared at Togore. The 'style' and 'humor' ratings began to plummet.

"Never..." the voice on the earpiece sighed. "...have I ever heard a line get so thoroughly butchered..."

Accusatus had gotten up while everyone was listening to Togore, and swung his chains at his enemy. Togore dodged quickly, and the chains nearly hit Mettaton in the face. The robot star gasped, dramatically putting a hand on his chest. "What has gotten into you, son? I thought I had raised you better!"

Accusatus was clearly about to give an angry response, but then he paused. "Why... I was just defending myself. _He's_ the one who started this fight!" The lion smirked and pointed at Togore.

A collective gasp went up from the audience, and the 'style' rating went up due to the script's 'development'. Accusatus had caught on to what was happening, and was going to use it against Togore.

"B-but..." Togore waved his hands. "...there's cameras! Everyone saw you hit me first-" The audience booed again as Togore broke character, hurling their food and drinks at him. Mettaton sighed and put his hands on his hips. "Son, what did I tell you about breaking the fourth wall?" He asked, making the audience laugh. "How does that even-" "Young man, you are going to your room!" Mettaton quickly grabbed Togore by the collar of the blue shirt that had been put on him earlier, and dragged him towards the stairs, resisting the Sentinel's struggles.

"Will Mettaton be able to find out who started the fight? Will his children ever learn how to spend a day together without fighting? Will Mettaton's ex-wife even come back for the kids at all? Stay put for the answers after this commercial break!" a voice announced, and the 'Surprise Sitcom' theme played for a few seconds.

"You call THAT acting?" Mettaton sneered as he pushed Togore backstage. "You're a disgrace to entertainment!" The robot was about to insult Togore again, but a chain lashed around his throat. Accusatus was pulling with all of his might, trying to choke Mettaton to death. Togore raced forward and tried his best to pry the chains from Mettaton's throat... but the robot made no attempt to save himself.

"What do you think you're doing?" Mettaton asked Togore with a confused frown. "Trying to save you from choking! Don't you feel the chain?" The Sentinel answered, and Mettaton laughed mockingly. "Robots can't choke, you half-hearted performer!" Behind the robot, Accusatus paused as he realized that Mettaton was right. He pulled the chains back, but the sound caught Mettaton's attention.

"You tried to murder ME?" The robot asked in an offended tone before kicking Accusatus in the face. The prisoner howled in pain and covered his eye, walking backwards into a wall. "Do you have no respect for someone who has achieved such a level of STARDOM as I?" Mettaton lowered his leg and sneered at the prisoner.

Accusatus growled and lowered his hand. His left eye was swollen shut, but his right eye was full of anger.

Before Togore could intervene, the lion threw his chains at Mettaton's legs, and yanked them back as hard as he could. Mettaton screamed in horror as his beloved legs were ripped from his body. "AAAAAUUUUGGGHH! You absolute _fiend!_ " The robot crawled over to his legs and cradled them in his arms. "All my years of stardom have come to an end! Without my legs, I am _nothing!_ "

"Your legs can be put back on!" Togore rolled his eyes, stepping over the broken Mettaton to fight Accusatus once more. The lioned bared his teeth, then paused as his nose twitched. A hungry smile formed on his face as Accusatus took a deep breath, then he turned and ran out of the volcano.

Togore went after him, finding his way through the tunnel carved into the rock of Mount Te Deum. It was pitch-black when he stepped outside, Togore hadn't realized that it was close to midnight.

"Human..." Accusatus snarled. He had gotten a whiff of Frisk's scent as the child had gotten close to the volcano. Togore's adopted sibling was now frozen, with nowhere to hide and the most dangerous prisoner on the island looming above them. "I used to hunt your kind years ago... as we monsters drove them underground." The lion licked his lips and cracked his knuckles. "Maybe killing you before capturing another one of your family members will show that old king that he must give himself up." Frisk stepped back and looked for help, terror on their face.

Togore's heart pounded in his chest, all other sounds fading as he charged forward to save his sibling. Accusatus raised an arm to bludgeon the child with his horrible chains, then stiffened and let out a hoarse cough. A black spear had impaled the prisoner through his back, exiting his chest mere centimeters away from Frisk's nose. Accusatus was unable to even give one final roar of pain as he turned to dust, and the weapon that had been used to kill him clattered to the ground.

Togore got to Frisk, landing on his knees before he threw his arms around the child. "Frisk..." Togore hugged his sibling to his chest, relieved that his family was safe now. As he felt Frisk's small arms hug him back, Togore looked at the black spear. Strangely enough, it was designed similarly to Togore's, like a longer and thinner version of the Delta Rune.

The Sentinel looked up to see where the spear had came from. Far off was a shadowy figure, slowly walking towards the volcano. Togore didn't believe his eyes at first. Whatever that thing was, it had thrown the spear from a mile away.

But the hit had been perfect.

Behind this advancing figure was darkness, spilling into the air and sky and seeming to devour everything that it touched. "Frisk..." Togore's voice was almost a whisper. "...what were you running from?" The Sentinel stood up, backing away slowly while he held the human. Frisk looked back at the figure, and Togore noticed something that looked like a teartrack underneath their eye.

"The Doom-bringer." Frisk answered, shuddering and hugging their brother tighter.


	66. You Are Guilty of What Happens

Frisk's arms couldn't have hugged their brother any tighter. The unstoppable force of corruption was heading their way, and they didn't know of anything that could stop it.

 _There is nothing to stop it._ Chara chuckled inside Frisk's mind. _That lion getting speared is something, isn't it? Ironic, he gets killed by a dark version of the weapon he used to kill your brother._

"Frisk, are you okay?" Togore asked, looking down at the human that was holding onto him in terror. Frisk couldn't lie, not now. He needed to know what had happened. "Ama is dead." They said softly, their face twisting with the weight that those words carried. Togore's eyes widened slightly, and he lost his breath. It was if those words had literally knocked the wind out of him.

Frisk watched as Togore's eyes teared up, and he shook his head. "No." He insisted, his voice cracking. "How would you even know?" Togore asked, bitterness in his voice.

Frisk pointed at the advancing darkness. "It got her. All it takes is one touch, and it begins to erase you. There's no-" "It's not... no!" Togore argued more, setting his human sibling down and gripping his blonde hair. "No... oh no, Ama!" Togore's voice was merely a croak of grief, as he looked at the ground in despair. "I needed her! She was my love!"

"Togore, we have to go!" Frisk turned to the volcano. "There's a lot of science equipment in there... maybe we can fund something to weaken it. Maybe-" Frisk turned to look at Togore. The miserable boss monster had taken off the goofy blue shirt and pinwheel hat, and was sitting on his knees.

"Hopeless." He muttered to himself. "I'm hopeless. She told me that I'm evil-" "No you're not! Togore, what you do defines you, not the life you used to lead!" Frisk insisted, but their brother hung his head. "She was scared of me, Frisk. If.. .if she really is... gone, then she may have left without loving me anymore."

Frisk's heart sank at Togore's hopelessness. "Undyne died too. So did Sans. I don't want you dying now! Please, let's go!" Frisk went over and tugged on their brother's arm. Togore looked over.

"The boat." He said softly. "The one at the back of the castle... try to get as many people in there and escape."

Frisk knew that would only delay their destruction. The Malum-bringer would consume everything, the island, the ocean, the air, all of it. Escape was pointless. "Togore, please..." They begged, hugging his big, fluffy arm. "...you're family!"

Togore's eyes fell shut. "I failed my fiance, Frisk. I failed her."

Just then, something began to rumble inside the volcano. Frisk's first thought was 'Eruption', but that couldn't have been it. No smoke or lava poured from the top, and the air wasn't heating up, either.

The rumbling went silent after a few moments. Figuring that nothing was going to come of that, Frisk looked up at Togore. He hadn't responded at all to the volcano, his hands still hiding his face from the world that had just taken away someone he loved. Frisk went to take his hands away and talk sense into the grieving monster, but then something caught their attention. Something was slowly emerging from one of the dark corridors carved into Mount Te Deum, clothed in a white robe that hid any face this creature may have had.

"T-T-Togore..." Frisk gave a worried yank on their brother's arm, and he looked up. Now that the figure had gotten closer, two horns could be seen curling from two holes in his hood, ending in points on either side of his head. His face remained obscured by the shadow cast by the night. Togore got to his feet and assumed a defensive stance, getting Frisk behind one of his armored legs.

"Identify yourself, by order of the Co-captain of the Royal Guard." Togore said firmly, his fists raised if a fight were to break out. The figure ignored both Togore and Frisk, walking past them and looking at the cloud of corruption that continued growing behind them.

"Go to Papyrus's house." The figure said, his voice soft and fragile. Two glowing swords appeared in his hands, and he took a giant leap forward, cutting through the air until he landed in front of the Doom-bringer. From afar, Frisk could see the two cross weapons and begin to duel, which actually slowed down the corruption that had been consuming everything at a steady pace. The newcomer wasn't so much fighting to win as much trying to keep the Doom-bringer where he was.

"Papyrus's house?" Togore muttered, looking across the fields to where his subordinate lived. "Why-" The cloud of darkness had neared Papyrus's house, and the Junior royal guard was fleeing in a panic. Behind him was someone who had walked with him to the house to keep him company...

"MOM!" Frisk and Togore shouted at the same time. They sprinted towards Toriel, who heard them and pointed behind them, wanting her children to get somewhere safe. Frisk looked back at the duel, and realized what the new person was doing. He wasn't trying to stop the Malum-bringer completely, he was trying to keep the dark monster away from Papyrus and Toriel. Why he cared was beyond Frisk's understanding in such a time of chaos.

The white-robed newcomer was kicked in the chest, with such force that he flew across the island, crashing in a cloud of dust by the castle. Having dispatched his opponent, the Doom-bringer advanced towards Papyrus. "QUEEN TORIEL, THAT DARK CREATURE HAS OBLITERATED ALMOST ALL OF MY BROTHER'S HOTELS!" Papyrus shouted at Toriel as he ran. "THE FINANCIAL FALLOUT IS GOING TO CAUSE QUITE A RECESSION IN THE ISLAND'S ECONOMY!"

Togore was almost there, with Frisk right on his heels. "Frisk, go to the castle with mom and Papyrus! I'll hold this thing off-" "Don't touch it!" Frisk shouted, grabbing the tattered cloak that hung from the back of the Sentinel's shoulders. "The second you touch that thing, you'll start being corrupted! You won't exist anymore!"

This caused him to slow down and look behind at his sibling. "She's gone, Frisk. Ama's gone, and I-" "You have more than enough reason to stay alive." Frisk interrupted, still tugging on his cloak. "We all love you! None of us want you to die!"

The lapse in judgement by both the human and the monster allowed the Malum-bringer to almost reach Toriel, extending a hand forward to obliterate her. But the hand was knocked away by a bone that shot out of nowhere, stunning him. "FRISK, TOGORE! YOU NEED TO GET AWAY FROM HERE, THAT DARKNESS SEEMS DANGEROUS!" Papyrus said, then promptly ran towards the corruptor. "You need to stay away from it, too!" Toriel cried out as she was able to escape, and Togore hugged her in relief.

"Mom, Frisk, we're leaving." Togore told them both, then looked over his shoulder. "PAPYRUS, REGROUP!" He shouted, hoping Papyrus would get the message. But Papyrus was cackling triumphantly, racing at the enemy in the hopes of saving the island, however deluded those hopes were.

"LISTEN HERE, SHADOWY BEING!" Papyrus stopped several yards away from the Malum-bringer. The dark warrior tilted his head in confusion, curious as to why Papyrus wasn't running away. "YOU ARE UNDER ARREST FOR VANDALISM, PUBLIC ENDANGERMENT, AND MAKING THE NIGHT DARKER THAN IT WAS ALREADY SUPPOSED TO BE!" Papyrus said, pointing an accusatory finger at the Doom-bringer, then charged forward to incapacitate the lawbreaker as he had been trained to do. A chorus of "NO!" rang out from Frisk, Toriel, and Togore, as the dark being stretched out a hand, knowing that all it would take was one touch-

 _CRRRAAACK!_

A large bone shot at an angle from the ground, hitting the Malum-bringer in the jaw and making him stumble to his right, as Papyrus missed his attempt to tackle him and face-planted into the dirt. Frisk looked back in disbelief. Sans was alive.

"Heya." Sans said, tilting his hat politely to the queen and her family. "Looks like my hotels are a _shadow_ of their former glory." He chuckled, and trotted forward to the Malum-bringer. "So, big guy, can I give you some advice?" Sans winked, as the dark monster stood, silently.

Sans's eyes went dark, his empty sockets boring into the villain of the island's prophecy with judgement and warning. "Get away from my brother, right now." He said coldly, his calm yet enraged voice sending chills up Frisk's back.

The Malum-bringer ignored Sans and turned to Papyrus, raising his armored foot and preparing to bring it down on his head. "S-SANS!" Papyrus said, trying to crawl away, but the darkness was closing in. "SANS, HE'S TOO DANGEROUS! YOU NEED TO RUN!" Sans's left eye flashed, and his hand went forward to take the Doom-bringer's soul and fling him away... but nothing seemed to happen. Frisk saw panic flash in the skeleton's eyes, and he strained harder to use his kinetic abilities as Papyrus continued pleading with his brother to run.

Something blue did seem to circulate inside the dark monster... his soul existed, but it was too chaotic and ungrounded. He could not be controlled. Helplessly, Sans ran forward to try and do something, but it was too late. The foot went down, silencing Papyrus.

Sans stopped dead in his tracks, and the whole world seemed to go silent. No one moved. Frisk watched as Papyrus's essence slowly turned black and scattered, being drawn back into the corruption that was devouring the world.

Not even taking so much as a second to appreciate another kill, the Malum-bringer strode towards Sans, the dark hunger to erase everything continuing to push him forward. Sans did nothing. He couldn't do anything, anyways. And now he had nothing to do anything for.

Toriel, knowing that this might buy them some time, pulled at her children and started dragging them away, trying to urge them to start running to the castle. But then something else happened. A gush of wind blew the family forward, and something slammed into the enemy, knocking him away and making him spin head over heel into the black cloud, which receded with his movements. Where there had once been houses and hotels, there was now a huge gap. The island itself had a huge hole in it where the corruption had erased it, and the sea quickly surged in to fill the gap.

Far in the distance, the dark cloud that accompanied the Malum-bringer began to erase the sea, as he began the long swim back to the island. Frisk went forward immediately and hugged Sans, who wasn't even crying. He was too shocked to register all of this. Toriel and Togore went forward to hug him as well, not saying a single word. Frisk caught something fluttering out of the corner of his eye, and looked over. It was the newcomer from before. He had catapulted himself at the Malum-bringer and knocked him off the island from afar. He wasn't being corrupted from having made contact with the corrupted being, like Amabilia and Papyrus. This stranger seemed completely fine.

Toriel looked over as well, gasping slightly when she saw him. The white-robed monster raised his head, and a pained sigh could be heard as he looked at the group. "I am here to bring hope to you. As best as I can, for as long as I can." He said softly, then looked back at the distant opponent. "There's enough time for you all to leave the island. When he comes back, I'm going to take care of him, I promise." "How?" Sans chuckled, almost mockingly. "Take care of that thing... there is no stopping it. You got lucky, and you won't get lucky again. All we can do is get away and hope we can live out our lives before it cuts them short."

The stranger walked forward, his face still obscured by the night. He stood in front of Sans, eerily silent, and everyone backed away. Everyone except Sans. "Go ahead, do something." Sans snapped. "What does it matter?"

And the stranger did do something. He got on his knees and hugged Sans.

"Sans..." His voice cracked, and Sans's eyes darted around in shock. Frisk looked closer at the stranger's hands, and saw green vines tangled around his fingers. More vines seemed to curl around his horns, possibly more were hidden by his cloak. "Sans, I'm so sorry I couldn't help him. Please, please, don't give up." The skeleton looked back at Frisk, as if to ask what was going on. Frisk shrugged, their expression just as lost as Sans's.

The newcomer let Sans go, and looked at Frisk. "Chara is still there." He told the human. "You need to get them out. Gaster's equipment might be able to do the job-" He paused as something caught his eye. Something was watching them from the slopes of the volcano.

Flowey.

The stranger made an angry noise, like a snarl of hatred. The swords appeared in his hands again, and he walked towards the flower. "Frisk, we must hurry!" Toriel said, picking up the child. "The determination extractor might do the job." Sans said bluntly, not looking up. He was still in a foul mood, but Frisk didn't blame him. When Frisk's brother had died, they'd rewritten a timeline and promptly destroyed everything, so they weren't exactly in a postion to judge him. Togore followed along, his eyes fixed on the ground as he finally had some time to quietly grieve over Ama being taken from him. The human looked back at the cloud of darkness, watching as it slowly grew. Deep down, doom seemed unavoidable. They could feel that this timeline, one way or another, was nearing its end.


	67. Because Reading Makes a Story Happen

Inside the lab, Frisk was being strapped to a table by Sans, who couldn't hold the usual smile.

 _Gone._

Alphys was timidly making her way over, holding up another strap. "H-h-here..." Sans took the strap out of her hands. Not angrily, but in a quiet, swift motion. Alphys's fingers tapped against each other nervously as she stepped away from Sans.

 _Gone._

"Sans, would you like some help?" Toriel's kind voice called to him from who knows where. Sans didn't know. He didn't care either.

 _Gone._

Sans tightened the straps to hold Frisk in place before he could begin extracting the fragment of Chara that had gotten them in this mess. "Sans?" The human spoke, causing Sans to pause for a moment and look at his friend. "Sans... please, just tell us that you're okay."

The skeleton did nothing, leaving Frisk once he was done and walking over to the determination extractor.

 _My brother is gone._

Sans could only assume that Papyrus had died in the last timeline that Frisk had spoken about. It was possible that Frisk was the one who did it. But knowing that Papyrus had died then, and died now, just made his death seem unavoidable. Like a part of a story that there was no getting around, and Sans was expected to just live with it.

"You all can go." Sans finally spoke, looking over at the Dreemurr family and Alphys. "There's nothing else for you to do here." "That's not true!" Toriel exclaimed, stepping forward with her hands out. "Sans, we need to be here for you. You can't bear what happened by yourself-" "How come you're the judge of that?" Sans interrupted, flicking a few switches on the determination extractor. The machine began to hum, and light emerged from a few gaps in it.

He looked up as he was on his way to bring Frisk over, and saw that all eyes were on him. Toriel, Alphys, Gaster (who was constantly smiling due to his state of being a temmie), and even Togore, who had lost his fiancé. The Sentinel held a look of sympathy in his eyes, wanting Sans to feel better. Whether Togore's look was out of friendship or a hope that his own sorrow could go away, Sans couldn't tell.

"Really, just go. You heard that strange guy, we gotta' get off the island. That boat that Asgore protects is the only thing we can use, so get cracking." Sans sighed dismissively, then turned back to the table that Frisk was strapped to. The others began filing out of the room, with Togore hanging back for a moment.

The Sentinel slowly walked over to the table, looking sadly down at his sibling. He playfully rubbed Frisk's hair to cheer them up, then looked at Sans. "We're going to need you with us." Togore said firmly, offering Sans a soft smile. "No friend left behind." The captain of the royal guard left the lab, leaving Sans alone with Frisk and Gaster.

"So." Gaster said, as Sans pushed the table over to the determination extractor. "You're feeling hopeless again, aren't you?" Sans looked over at his former boss, who had been reduced to a humiliating state. "If you really understood the timelines, Sans, you would understand that the here and now doesn't matter. All that matters are the possibilities of the next chapter in our stories."

Gaster circled his tiny cage for a moment before laying down, still looking at Sans through the bars of the cage. "No response?" The scientist-turned-temmie's head tilted. "Very unlike you, Sans. Normally you make one of your ridiculous puns or scare the essence out of all of us with your hollow-eyed showcase."

Sans looked down. His eyes fell shut, and he put his hands into his pockets. "If now doesn't matter," He started speaking, his voice fragile and quiet. "Then why does it hurt so much?"

"Because you're lucky enough to have a soul, Sans." Gaster replied promptly. "You're fortunate enough to not have gotten bogged down in work and forget what was really waking you up in the morning. People." The scientist sighed and rolled onto his back. "My time spent in this ridiculous form has made me realize that what things look like can't matter as much as what things do, and what they really are. As unscientific as that sounds, Sans, I believe it to be factual."

The determination extractor continued its slow hum, energy coursing through it. Sans looked back up at Gaster, chuckling softly. "You've really come a long way, huh boss?" He remarked before pushing the table in front of the machine. The skeleton looked down at their human friend, wanting to make sure they were ready for this extraction. Frisk, without having to speak, nodded in agreement, and Sans flipped a switch on the machine.

Sans watched as the two prongs on the extractor's front went forward, coming to a stop directly on Frisk's chest. The machine's monitor turned on, giving Sans a clear view of the soul inside the human. Sure enough, there was a fragment of another soul that did not belong. "Alright, Chara..." Sans pressed the 'extract' button. "...I'm fixing to _take you out._ " Sans joked, and heard Gaster writhe around in his cage from how awful the joke was.

The process began, identifying the fragment and drawing it away from Frisk's soul. Sans looked back at Frisk to make sure they were no complications, and saw the human staring right back at him. But this wasn't a friendly stare... it was bloodthirsty. "You lazy bag of bones..." Chara's insult poured from Frisk's mouth. "...all you're doing is prolonging this process. If you take me out, I still win. Maybe all the timelines won't be negated, but this one still will be. It'll all be rewritten again, and your brother will have died just to come back to die again."

Frisk's teeth bared in anger, and Sans simply smiled back. "I won't lie, I've been having a pretty rough night." Sans admitted, watching the fragment become separated on the monitor. "But knowing that you won't see the next morning makes me feel just a bit better." "You won't save everyone. Neither will Togore, neither will Frisk, and neither will Asriel!" Chara spat, straining against the restraints as they felt their last sliver of determination being pried away from Frisk's body. "Asriel?" Sans questioned, looking back again. "You got him killed, Chara. He's a flower now, working for you. Why would he save us?"

Chara went silent, their eyes darting back at the door of the lab. "It doesn't matter that how he's here, all that matters is that he's going to die-" "I'm getting sick of you beating around the bush." Sans growled, slowing the process a bit. "Tell me what's going on, and don't take your time, or I make it go faster."

Frisk's eyes blinked, as Chara weighed their options. "There is a hope-bringer from another timeline. 'The Spero-bringer', since everyone here seems to love latin." Chara rolled their eyes. "Asriel was brought back by the six human souls from a parallel timeline. Basically, he's going to kill himself and the Malum-bringer, or that's the plan at least. It won't happen."

Sans went dead silent. His old friend was alive. And on a suicide mission.

"See you in the next storyline, Sans." Chara snickered, and finally gave up. Their soul fragment was pried from Frisk's, and was held between the two prongs of the determination extractor as Frisk gasped, the whole experience having thrown the poor human into whack. Sans looked at the piece of soul, then at the monitor that recorded its contents. A fragment, that contained more determination than it should've. That of a human, and a monster. The screen flashed with several options:

[EXTRACT DETECTED HUMAN DETERMINATION]

[EXTRACT DETECTED MONSTER DETERMINATION]

[POWER DOWN]

Sans chose the first one, and Chara's determination, the power that made up their consciousness, was turned into pure energy. The maniacal human ceased to exist, at least in this timeline.

Frisk was pale, with small streams of sweat pouring through their hair. Sans went over to the table and unstrapped Frisk quickly, putting a hand to the human's heart to see if the heartbeat was irregular. It sounded fine, but Frisk seemed to need some food, and probably a nap. "Take it easy, kid. It's all over." Sans said, then walked over to the refrigerator in the lab. There was a MTT face steak and not much else, so Sans grabbed it to help Frisk heal up. But when he turned around to go back to the table, Frisk had gotten up. "Frisk, are you nuts?" Not wanting to waste time running, Sans simply appeared next to the weakened human. "You gotta rest, kid! We've got time to escape, that thing had a lot of distance to make up-"

"Asriel." Frisk muttered, taking small, ginger steps towards the door. "He's here. He can't die again. I can't let him die again. Not again. Not again..." Frisk continued mumbling, probably only half-awake at this point. "If you're going to be crazy, then at least eat this." Sans said, holding up the steak. His human friend sighed and took the food, taking weak bites at first, then larger ones. Soon the steak was gone, and a small amount of color had returned to Frisk's face. Their eyes seemed more alert, more ready to get something done. Sans nodded and placed a hand on Frisk's shoulder. "We're taking a shortcut." He said firmly. "And if you throw up, aim away from me."

* * *

Asriel Dreemurr was making his way up the slope of the mountain. It would be a while before the sun came up, so his face remained obscured by the night. As he walked, the hope-bringer would fiddle with his hands, stretching them to try to see if there was any way to free his fingers from the vines that were snared around his body. But they wouldn't come loose. At least they weren't really restraining him at the moment, either.

Outwardly, Asriel knew that he looked pretty awesome, at least in his opinion. He was wearing a pure, white cloak like the heroes of old that he'd read stories about, and had a fierce pair of horns curling out of his head. But under all of that was the vines. The green strings of plant that looped and curled around him that were a result of having been brought back from the ashes of Flowey. He always felt them, and was always thinking of the memories that accompanied them. Horrible, horrible deeds. Before he finished his mission and died, Asriel wanted to at least numb the pain.

"Oh, look who it is!" Flowey the flower snickered, eyeing Asriel as the boss monster drew closer and closer. "This must be an out-of-body experience for you, huh?" Asriel didn't answer the flower's taunts, pressing onwards to right a wrong for once in his life. "Hee hee hee... you can't escape what we've done, can you?" Flowey asked, and again Asriel stayed silent. But he reached inside his hood and tugged at a vine that was looped around his throat. It wouldn't come off.

"Come on, take another life. One more, Asriel." Flowey said slyly, watching as Asriel subconciously felt his sides and arms. The presence of the vines grew stronger, the sins that they carried weighing him down more and more. Asriel sniffled slightly, a tear in his eye as the white hot remorse slashed through him yet again. But he continued anyways, despite his own thoughts dogging and cursing him with every step. Finally, he was where he wanted to be. Within striking distance of Flowey.

"What's one more going to change, huh?" Flowey asked rhetorically, smiling wickedly as Asriel held out his hands. A glowing chaos saber appeared in each hand, and Asriel's fingers closed around the handles. "One more kill. One more rush of that adrenaline of taking a life. Feel as alive as you can, Asriel. Feel alive by ending life." Flowey started laughing as he began to see a few tears dropping from the hidden face, and Asriel raised the swords in the air. Guilt, bitterness, and sadness was all the resurrected monster felt. And it would be all that he'd ever feel for however much longer he'd last-

But before Asriel could strike the flower, he heard a noise that stopped him. An awful, awful noise...

It was Frisk. Throwing up.

"Welp, there goes the steak." Sans chuckled as Frisk vomited from the rapid teleportation. The human took a few deep breaths, then wiped their mouth and turned to Asriel.

"Asriel-" Frisk stopped themselves in the middle of their sentence. They held up a finger and turned around again, throwing up more. Asriel winced at the awful sound, cringing at how sick his sibling seemed to be. Frisk wiped their mouth again and stood up, slightly disoriented, but still determined as ever. "Asriel." Frisk spoke again, sounding like they were on laughing gas from their dazed state. "It's time to let go of it. All of it." They said, reaching out. "Killing another version of yourself won't do a thing to help, and you know it."

Asriel's shoulders stiffened, and he cleared his throat so he wouldn't sound like he'd been crying. "It's not about helping anymore. It's about righting a wrong." Asriel said firmly. "This is the only opportunity I'll ever have to show the world that what I did was wrong. And that I should pay for it." Asriel turned around to Flowey, who was still smiling devilishly.

"You don't need to prove anything to anyone, Asriel." Frisk said, shuffling forward. "I found out a long time ago that you're not the bad guy-" "I am the bad guy!" Asriel snapped, looking over his shoulder. "I'm the one who started this! I came up with the plan to make Togore evil in that timeline, and now he's been brought back and made stronger! I'm the one who inspired you to live to 'see what happens'!" "You didn't have a soul, Asriel-" "No excuse." Asriel cut off their sibling coldly, raising the swords again.

"Wow. You really need a hug, man." Sans chuckled, and Asriel looked back yet again. Even Frisk glanced back, surprised that Sans seemed so calm. He'd just been completely hopeless a minute ago, and now he was trying to give out hope to someone in need. "Yeah, kiddo, you screwed up. You really put everyone on every 'Most Wanted' list to shame. But you know what you also did?" Sans winked. "You felt bad, Asriel. You got a soul back, a chance to try to turn yourself around, and now you're trying to do some good. In a slightly-messed up fashion, but still trying to do something right." Asriel stayed still. A mixture of emotions went through him, happiness to see his old friend, confusion as to why Sans wasn't bringing up his fight with Asriel long ago, and the predominant pain of his conscience reminding himself of how disgusting a person he'd been. To everyone, to everything.

Sans adjusted his hat a bit, looking behind Asriel at Flowey. "That thing is you. It's always going to be you, no matter what. But you gotta remember that Flowey is a made-up name. A pseudonym. You know what's not a fake name? Asriel Dreemurr. My friend, everyone's friend, really. Someone who I'm going to forgive because I know he can make the right choice."

Asriel's hands twitched a bit, and Flowey began to growl. "Stay out of this, you piece of trash." The flower hissed. "Forgiveness means nothing. Justice is how things REALLY get sorted out-" "Yeah, no." Sans interrupted. "Not everything. Because sometimes, people just do stuff that isn't like them. There's a lot of opportunity to do bad in the world, and the best people mess up all the time. I'm not saying that we gotta' let everything go, some things have to be punished." Sans looked up at his friend, and Asriel felt a lump well up in his throat. "But if there's any chance that we can forgive people we care about, then we need to take it. If no one's perfect, then why care about anyone if you're not willing to take them back when they mess up?"

Frisk was smiling at Sans, obviously proud of him for pushing through his own personal problems to reach someone who desperately needed help. "N-no." Asriel shook his head. "I'm... I'm not me anymore. I'm... I-I'm..." he stammered, looking down. The swords in his hands vanished, and he looked down at the vines that tangled around his fingers. "...I'm still Flowey the flower. And I can't get away from what I've done."

Everyone was quiet. Asriel closed his hands, figuring that Frisk and Sans were done reasoning with him. He reached up and rubbed his eyes quickly, but when he lowered his hands he saw that Frisk had walked over. "No you're not. You never were." Frisk said. "We both did messed up things. But we both feel bad. We both want things to be different from now on." Asriel felt terrible for Frisk, knowing that their sibling had to carry around some of the same burdens that he did. "Frisk, just let me do this. It won't matter in the end-"

"How can you be a hope-bringer if you're so hopeless?" Frisk said, almost in a shout. They hugged Asriel tightly. "I'm not letting you do this." Frisk said adamantly. Asriel sighed and reached down, trying to pry Frisk off of himself. "Frisk... I'm not worth it. What's saving one more life going to mean?" Asriel told them. "What will you accomplish if I'm still alive tomorrow?" "I'll have saved my brother!" Frisk shouted again, looking up with misty eyes. "Asriel, we all love you! You're defined by your heart, and what you want when you are true to who you are!"

Sans, who had been silent while Frisk tried to reason with Asriel, finally piped up. "That flower's a part of you, Asriel. But it won't define you unless you don't want to change yourself. And since you're willing to bite the dust to save us, I'd say that you want to change pretty badly." Asriel hesitated, his hands falling to his sides as Frisk stubbornly clung to his legs. "Why do you want to let me off the hook so badly?" Asriel asked Sans, his voice little more than a strangled breath.

"Because I've got an opportunity to forgive someone whom I care about." Sans replied with a shrug. "Because you've got a chance to start over. You've got the desire to start over. You've got the heart to start over. Why should I deny you forgiveness if you're truly sorry?"

Asriel slowly began sinking to his knees, hugging Frisk tightly as he sat on the ground. Flowey gave Sans one last look of contempt before slithering away.

"Listen, kid... those souls that brought you back are using you as a puppet." Sans told Asriel, sitting next to the siblings. "A puppet for a good cause, but a puppet nonetheless. While giving up and dying might be the easiest way to win, it might not be the best way."

Asriel pulled his hood back, revealing his tearstained face. He had a few vines twisting through his messy white hair and around his ears, and even one drooping over his snout. Asriel looked at Sans with a glimmer of hope in his soul. "I'm an idiot. An idiot, and a baby."

"You're an idiot baby, huh?" Sans asked, wiping his eys and chuckling a bit before hugging Frisk and Asriel. "Well... I am too. Let's both just try our best, okay?" He advised, and Asriel didn't let go of either of them. All of them were hurt. But at least they weren't as alone as they thought they had been.


	68. The End

((Okay, there's probably going to be some grammatical errors in this one, it was late when I finished it. I'll look over it and correct them as best as I can, but this is the end of Malumtale. I hope you all enjoyed the story.))

"Just because it's risky doesn't make it impossible."

Frisk listened as Sans continued trying to convince Asriel of a way of stopping the corruption without the prince having to sacrifice himself. "I was brought back to die." Asriel, who was pacing right and left anxiously, replied. "The souls told me, I get myself and that thing alone, and we can kill each other without hurting anything else." "Kid, you've had too miserable of a life to throw it away again." Sans asserted. "Right, Frisk?"

Frisk looked up. Everything was about to fall into place, for better or for worse. So much was at stake...

"Sans is right, Asriel." Frisk agreed, and Asriel sighed in disagreement. "The core might be able to shatter that thing out over all the storylines."

Sans had recently proposed the idea that the three friends lure the Malum-bringer into the mountain, then somehow get him into the core and disperse him over the storylines. It was a very far-fetched idea, but as of now it was the only idea of theirs that they had that didn't end with Asriel being dead. Both Frisk and Sans were desperate to give Asriel another chance at a happy life with his family and friends. The rest of the Dreemurr family had presumably made their way back to the castle to board the boat, in an effort to avoid becoming collateral damage in the fight that was about to happen.

The hope-bringer paused in his pacing, his eyes darting between Frisk and Sans. "What if dispersing it causes the other storylines to be corrupted?" He asked, and Frisk immediately shook their head. "Then we'll deal with it some other way. Besides, the only way that thing is so powerful is because it's a bunch of corruption in one manifestation. If it shatters, then it probably won't have as much strength as it has now." The human replied, which felt like a pretty decent answer to a subject that had been giving them headaches. Determination and corruption were very complicated topics, but Frisk felt like they understood them enough to know that Sans's plan had a chance of succeeding.

Sans maintained his calm composure, more determined than ever to save a life now. "Asriel, you can definitely get that thing into the mountain. We'll be waiting there when you do, and we'll have everything set up. This might not really be that difficult at all, I don't know why the souls didn't think of this idea themselves." He explained, the last comment referring to the six souls that had given their determination to resurrect Asriel. Frisk had a feeling that the souls may have wanted Asriel to die for some reason, or maybe they had thought that Asriel erasing himself and the doom-bringer would be the least risky course of action. But they weren't going to go with that plan, Frisk just couldn't take a neutral approach to something this important. It was either save everyone that they could, or die trying.

"Better get ready." Sans advised, nodding his head towards the destroyed western end of the island. The Malum-bringer had completed the long swim back, continuing to eat away at everything that he touched as he set foot on the island of Te Deum once more. It was time for Asriel to complete the mission he'd been given.

Frisk didn't even let Asriel say goodbye before hugging him as tightly as he could. "Be careful." The human said, their eyes closing for a moment in slight fear that their brother was about to be ripped from them again, this time forever. "I will be." Asriel replied, stooping down to hug Frisk in return. The human's mind flashed back to the second storyline, when they'd reset everything to see if there could be a better outcome to this story. That had been the first time they'd truly met Asriel Dreemurr, and one of the first things they'd discovered about the furry monster was that he gave some of the nicest hugs one could wish for. It was a random moment, one that seemed like an eternity ago now, but it was what came to mind now.

Asriel let go of Frisk after a moment, then flipped his white hood back over his head. He threw his hands out from his sides, a glowing chaos saber appearing in each palm before his fingers closed around them. Frisk watched as their brother sprinted forward, then took a massive leap through the air, landing almost a mile away in front of the corrupted Togore, and the two began to duel again. Frisk turned on their feet to run to the core, but felt Sans's hand on their shoulder. "No time to run." He said, steering the human towards an abandoned house and opening the door. Frisk was extremely confused, almost panicking. What was Sans doing? Then their unease settled as the skeleton opened the door, taking a shortcut to take them to the core immediately. "Smart." Frisk noted as Sans walked forward to the central hatch of the core. "Yeah, maybe my skull isn't so thick after all." The skeleton responded with a chuckle, making Frisk laugh softly. Even in such an intense moment, Sans was still cracking puns. "Frisk, can you go get Gaster from the lab?" He asked the human, who had completely forgotten about the royal temmie-scientist. "Yeah... I'll be back in a few minutes." Frisk said, then turned and dashed to the door that led to Gaster's lab.

The royal scientist was currently taking a nap in his crate, lying on his back and occasionally wriggling as he dreamed about what an increased budget would produce for his scientific endeavors. Frisk gently lifted the crate off the table that it was resting on, then went to go back to the core. But they saw the determination extractor out of the corner of their eye, and the monitor that was displaying the fragment of a monster soul, the last remaining fragment of Asriel's original soul that had shattered when he'd first died in the flower bed.

 _Have you seen the flower bed? Whose petals shine of gold? In a land of sunsets red, our island home of old?_

The lyrics to 'The Flower Bed', Asriel's funeral song and a popular poem among the monsters ran through Frisk's mind again. Was that flower bed going to still be there tomorrow? Would Asriel get to live with his family in that castle again, as he had so long ago? If the six souls had anything to say about it, they might prevent him from being fully happy. Asriel needed to have some other source of determination aside from them.

Frisk went up to the Determination Extractor, and went to the options for the Extractor's storage system. Frisk clicked on '[DISPENSE MONSTER SOUL]', and watched as a small compartment opened, revealing the fragment that they'd found in the scorched earth timeline, a shining, white crystalline object that had been attached to Frisk's own soul at one point. So many things seemed to be coming full circle now, the boat that Asgore had protected might be put in use, the fallout from Frisk's choices was about to come to an end, and Asriel may have a chance to live again, with his own soul. Or at least part of it.

The human took the fragment and put it into their pocket, before heading back to the core with Gaster's cage. Sans had already gotten he machine to power up, and it was awaiting someone to enter into it so that it could proceed with its programming. "You think he might go back to normal once this is all over?" Sans asked, pointing at the sleeping royal scientist. Frisk cracked a smile and shrugged. "I don't know. I personally like him as a Temmie." They replied, setting the cage down by Sans's feet. "I'm going to go check where Asriel is at now." The human said, and Sans nodded. "Come back in one piece kid, okay?" He asked, and Frisk nodded with a reassuring smile.

Once they were outside, the human could see that the fight was going according to plan. Asriel and Togore were dueling like madmen, with the hope bringer jumping, leaping, and slashing around his opponent as the two slowly advanced towards the mountain. Togore, the doom-bringer, swung his spear and threw punches wherever he could, opting to maintain his defensive position while also pressing forwards. Neither could land a serious blow on the other, both being incredibly adept at combat. From their position, Frisk could tell that there were five minutes left until the two would make it to the core.

Feeling much more comfortable about this plan, Frisk turned to walk back into the core. But they spun around immediately as what sounded like a howling wind nearly burst their eardrums. Asriel was keeping Togore at bay, his two chaos sabers shaking as they held the doom-bringer's spear back. But behind Togore, the cloud of corruption, that had chewed through the world like a black hole, was now raging like a tornado, with gusts of black wind lashing towards Asriel, who still refused to back down. The hope-bringer gritted his teeth, and, to Frisk's amazement, actually started pushing Togore back.

"You won't destroy their happy ending!" Asriel roared, taking careful steps forward as he tried to maneuver to where he could push Togore towards the core. "My family is going to live together, and you won't take that away from them-" The prince fell silent as the clouds swirled into an familiar image- a withered flower, with dreadful eyes and a nasty grin. Asriel faltered, Togore's manipulation of his self-deranging nature had worked. The hope-bringer's swords were knocked away from him, and his enemy planted a fierce kick to Asriel's chest. Frisk could only watch as Asriel was hurled across the island, and crashed into the castle, around where Asgore's throne would be.

 _Have you seen the flower bed? In the room of the throne? The guards keep it protected, inside the walls of stone._

Like a knee-jerk reaction, Frisk attempted to rewrite the storyline. This fight had ended just as horribly as it could, and having to fight their way back to this point seemed preferable to annihilation.

* * *

Yet, when Frisk opened their eyes after rewriting, nothing had changed. This was all too familiar... the human shut their eyes tightly and tried again.

* * *

Again, nothing happened. Frisk's eyes snapped open as the corrupted Togore reared his arm back in front of the human, spear in hand. The human leapt backwards, landing with a _thump!_ on their back. Frisk didn't turn around to see if Togore was following them, they dashed further into the lab to get away from the doom that was at hand.

"Sans!" Frisk had meant for their voice to be strong, resounding, attention-grabbing, but it came out as weak, raspy, wavering. "Sans, we have to get out of here!" They exclaimed, fear lacing the child's eyes as they ran up to their skeletal friend. A trail of sweat poured down the skeleton's head as he began to realize that their plan had failed. "Asriel... is he de-" "I don't know! He was kicked so hard that he hit the castle." Frisk interrupted, an awful feeling climbing into their throat. After all that they had been through... everything they'd done to try to avoid this... was this finally it? Was this the end of this story?

Even Sans was speechless. Everything had felt so hopeful minutes ago, and now all that hope was gone. A pounding noise echoed throughout the core, and the door that led inside was punched down by the doom-bringer. Togore twirled his spear and advanced, his shadowy eyes set upon Frisk as he strode towards the two friends. Frisk went completely numb, numb to the point that they didn't feel Sans grabbing their arm. The human felt... could it be called a flash? No, but whatever it was, it ended with Frisk and Sans being in the throne room instead of the core. Sans had teleported the two in time to avoid being impaled or dissolved. Frisk stumbled as their footing became a little unsteady, as was common for when they took 'shortcuts' with Sans, while the skeleton gasped and leaned against something, something that he'd had his hand on.

It was the central hatch of the core. Sans had teleported it as well.

While Frisk was, at first, going to see if Sans was okay, something lying on the ground caught their attention instead. It was their brother, Asriel Dreemurr, sprawled on his back. A trail of dirt and flowers trailed from where he lay, beginning near a large hole in wall of the castle. It had obviously been a nasty impact. "Oh-" Frisk couldn't think of anything more to say. They ran over to their brother, with eyes too dry to cry, and cradled his head, which was now uncovered. Vines were still loosely tangled around his snout and ears, and weaving through his hair on the top of his head. "Asriel-" Frisk choked out, putting his hand on his shoulder and shaking it gently. "-Asriel-" The boss monster did not wake up, the force of the impact was likely going to leave him unconcious for a while- but they would probably all be gone by then. The back door opened, and Asgore, Toriel, and the Sentinel- the uncorrupted one, of course- all stepped out. They had originally gone to the room to prepare the boat, but had hid in it when they heard something crashing outside. But the sound of Frisk's voice made any risk associated with stepping out dwindle.

"He won't wake up." Frisk said, lifting their head hopelessly to look at Toriel. "Mom, he won't wake up!"

Asriel was the only one strong enough to hold back or contain the Malum-bringer. And now he was incapacitated. It would be impossible to force the advancing being into the core to be shattered. "We'll..." Togore spoke up, trying to think of something to put everyone at ease with, but his mouth simply hung open in an awkward fashion as he failed to think of anything to say. Frisk grimaced and looked back at Asriel, who had an almost peaceful look upon his face. Like he was sleeping.

The final line of 'The Flower Bed' spun through Frisk's mind, the poem sounding more like a prophecy now than anything. This place had been protected from the outside, it was probably going to be the last place that the Malum-bringer would destroy. It was the place that, in each storyline, Asriel had found his 'rest', in one way or another. And it would be here that he would die again, only this time along with all that remained of his friends and family.

"We left Gaster back there." Sans spoke up after a second, still leaning against the core. "I thought that if we moved the core then... then we'd have a chance... but I didn't think to grab him-" "What does it matter." Frisk mumbled plainly, laying Asriel's head on the ground and flopping down on their back beside him. "What does it matter where he dies?" The human asked rhetorically. Without the ability to rewrite, or to combat this approaching menace, Frisk felt like there was no true determination left in them. There was no drive or reason to keep pushing ahead, to 'see what happens' or to find a 'happy ending.' Now, there was just going to be nothing.

The throne room was dead silent. Sans shut his eyes, the hopeless unbearable for him, while Togore finally closed his mouth and turned to his parents, tearing up slightly before hugging them both. Doom was drawing near, and hope seemed to be asleep. There was finally something that Frisk would not be able to come back from, something that they couldn't just push through through sheer drive and stubbronness.

Yet, despite how empty this room felt, despite the hollowness that was seeming to prevail inside of Frisk, despite the unbelievably impossible odds that they seemed to be up against, their soul continued its stubborn refusal to quit. Frisk's mind was telling them that there was nothing left to fight for, nothing left to hope for or dream about, but their soul still had the resounding strength to not look at what seemed unstoppable, and instead to believe in the impossible.

And then, as if a switch had been flipped, Frisk felt filled with DETERMINATION once again.

"No." They said, sitting up quickly. "No..." Frisk repeated, putting one hand on Asriel's chest and closing their eyes. "No... no, you were right. The happy ending won't be destroyed..." They said quietly, hoping that somehow Asriel would hear them. Frisk might not ever know, but whether or not this would allow them to communicate with Asriel was irrelevant in the grand scheme of things, since Frisk was really trying to get someone else's attention.

A consciousness stirred within Asriel, the younger sibling that had been dormant since Asriel had decided to try and survive this nightmare rather than give himself up to end it now awake again. _"We don't give up easy, do we?"_ The sibling said in amusement, making Frisk raise an eyebrow due to the awkward phrasing. "'We'? Nevermind... listen to me." They said, still with their eyes closed. Everyone in the room (except Asriel, of course) looked at Frisk in confusion, then among each other with eyebrow raises and shrugs. "Maybe six souls wasn't enough to stop all that corruption." Frisk conceded, then took a breath- peaceful, focused, even though what the human was about to propose was terrifying- "But maybe seven will."

The sibling was silent for a while, Frisk could tell that they were weighing options, possibly even considering an outcome that they had not foreseen yet. _"So... you're ready to end this story, yes?"_ The sibling asked, making Frisk reflect momentarily. Years and years of trying to 'write' things the way they wanted, trying to find an ending that best suited everyone, or interested them. But, at the end of all of this, their intervention had just made things worse. "I'm not saying that I want to end my story so much." Frisk replied. "But I want everyone else's story to keep going." They finished, and felt something coming from the consciousness of the sibling... respect? Agreement? Both? _"All I've done is make new stories, trying to see what all this world has in store."_ The sibling told Frisk. _"My older brother was always concerned about the risks that came with what I could write... and now here we are. After so long, it's all going to be over."_ The voice remarked. _"I never pictured it ending like this... you said you wanted 'everyone' to continue their stories. If we leave Asriel, then he will have no soul to bind him together. He will die- or worse- go back to being a flower."_ The human hesitated for a moment... would that be right? To do this and leave Asriel dead, or in a miserable state of existence?

Again, the ending line of 'The Flower Bed' helped the child to remember something. Frisk reached into their pocket and pulled out the soul fragment, causing the younger sibling to chuckle. _"You're quite selfless when you want to be, Frisk. A rather odd mentality for someone who can rewrite storylines-"_ "I am writing. Right now. I'm writing this story to where Asriel gets to live." Frisk explained. The younger sibling was silent for a moment, no emotion or thoughts coming to Frisk whatsoever.

Then the consciousness began to transfer itself to Frisk, the determination of what had been, in another timeline, the six human souls, found a counterpart, and immediately Frisk felt their mind become overrun with storylines- thousands upon thousands, that they had written as the determination of the original human spread thinner and thinner. Before Asriel could turn to dust, Frisk placed the soul fragment on his chest, and it vanished into the monster with a flash, merging with its owner.

"Any reason you were talking to yourself, kiddo?" Sans asked, and Frisk smiled and shook their head. "I wasn't talking to myself." They responded, leaving the normally informed Sans confused. Frisk chuckled and gave the skeleton a hug. "Maybe this will rewrite everything." They suggested as the skeleton continued to stand there and be confused. "Maybe everyone will come back after this."

Frisk let go of Sans, then walked over to Asgore. A crash could be heard outside, sounding suspiciously like the gates being torn from their hinges and hurled away. "I know what it's like to be scared." Frisk said, hugging the king. "When we get things we love taken away from us... that's when we need to find what can still be loved, not what can be hated." They told Asgore, who also seemed somewhat caught off-guard, but hugged Frisk anyways and rubbed their hair playfully.

They went to Togore next, who shook his head and backed away for a moment. "N-no." He stammered, his hands raising in apprehension. "I... I can't say goodbye to you, Frisk. Not you! I... I'm that thing, aren't I?" Togore asked. "The thing that's destroying everything... the thing that Ama-" The mention of his deceased fiancee made him flinch and turn his head, the Sentinel's fists clenched as grief started welling up in his chest. "-that Ama saw in her visions. I don't deserve to say goodbye... I don't deserve a hug... I'm evil, aren't I?" Frisk didn't answer his question directly, instead walking forward and giving Togore a hug. "I don't hate you Togore. None of us do." The human looked up at his face and smiled. "Why would I be hugging you if I hated you?" The Sentinel bit his lip. "O-oh." He responded with a slight voice crack, making Frisk laugh. "You awkward goof." They teased, then let go of him and faced Toriel.

The queen of Te Deum couldn't say anything. Toriel paid no attenion to the crashing and clanging that seemed to grow louder, she just stared at Frisk for a few moments, somehow understanding that Frisk had a plan for all this. The two just knew each other so well. Toriel could only sigh lightly, and walked over to Frisk. She lifted the human up in her arms, giving them as tight a hug as she could, knowing that, one way or another, her child was about to leave her for good. Frisk felt a few tears stain their shirt as Toriel breathed to contain the sobs, but Frisk stayed calm. An odd feeling of peace had come over them, knowing that this was going to end.

Frisk patted Toriel's back to comfort their adoptive mother, who'd cared for the human more than any living thing on the face of the earth. "Don't be sad... you're getting a child back." Frisk whispered, making Toriel look over at Asriel on the ground. While she had not been informed that this newcomer was her son, Toriel was able to put two and two together and realize that her oldest son was somehow back, alive for her to hold again. Toriel held back one more sob before setting Frisk on the ground, smiling proudly at them. The child smiled back, then turned to Asriel.

 _He has seen the flower bed, as he came from the west. In a time of darkest dread, he found a place to rest._

The terrifying noises grew silent as Frisk looked at Asriel, and then walked over to his side. This time, when Frisk shook Asriel's shoulder, the monster groaned, his legs shifting and his head turning as he started to stir. A bittersweet feeling rushed through Frisk as they smiled, thankful to have one final moment with their oldest brother. "Asriel-"

The moment was cut short as the large door of the throne room was torn from its hinges, flying over everyone's heads and slamming into the wall behind them. Every head in the room turned to see the doom-bringer, the golden flowers dissolving beneath his feet as he continued making his way forward. "Back room, now!" Frisk shouted, and Toriel and Asgore immediately went towards the back door. Togore stood still, dumbfounded for a moment at seeing a shadowy double of himself. Sans made his way to Asriel, grabbing his old friend's arm as Asriel woke up. "F...Frisk?" The prince said weakly, feeling significantly weaker than he had earlier. Asriel saw how Frisk faced down the Malum-bringer, the determination seemed to radiate around the human. Asriel connected the dots, immediately realizing what was about to happen. "No, Frisk, stop!" Asriel begged, reaching out. "Frisk, it has to be me! It should be me-" He was cut short as Sans teleported Asriel and himself into the back room, leaving only Togore outside.

"Get back there!" Frisk shouted, pointing to the back door. Togore didn't respond at first, looking between the core and the Malum-bringer, then he shrugged. "You're going to need something to slow it down." He said simply, then dashed forward. Before Frisk could do anything, Togore had somersaulted over the human's head, and held out his hands in the advance of the Malum-bringer. Togore watched as he started to wither away into nothing... but his move had made the shadowy opponent pause in confusion, locking eyes with his counterpart. Togore made one last grin as he dug his feet into the ground, using whatever he could to hold this enemy back. The Malum-bringer grabbed Togore's snout and tossed him aside. But as the Sentinel rolled to a stop in the flowers and started to dissipate for good, the human was racing forward, determination that was stronger than they'd ever felt before coursing through their veins. Frisk grabbed onto the spear that was in the corrupted monster's hands, dragging him backwards towards the core, which Frisk had messed with in the moments that Togore had given them. It was now starting to short-circuit, with electricity surging out of it and striking the walls and ceiling.

For once, the corrupted Sentinel tried to move backwards, pushing against his instincts to corrupt everything that was in sight in order to preserve himself, but Frisk was too determined. The child used all the determination they could to pull Togore with them, then yanked hard when they were both close enough to the central hatch of the core, causing the two to tumble inside.

 _ **"Our story isn't over, Kris."**_ The Malum-bringer's voice rang in Frisk's mind, then the two shattered into nothing.

* * *

When all the noise outside had gone silent, Sans carefully opened the door to the back room. He peeked through the narrow gap, seeing that half of the throne room (and almost all of the island) was completely gone, erased into nonexistence. The central hatch of the core was gone as well, and a small crater had been burned into the spot that it had been laying in.

"It's safe." He said to the family huddled behind him, and, slowly, the five monsters emerged from the room.

But what were going out to, really? The island, their home, was gone. An awful gasp sounded behind Sans, and he saw Toriel covering her mouth as she looked over to see Togore. His arms were gone completely, and most of his face had been erased. The corruption that had been devouring him had ended when the Malum-bringer had been shattered, but it had still been too much. Sans's gut (or whatever he had that served as a gut for a skeleton) twisted as the Sentinel's head turned to look at his family, unable to give any type of expression. Sans couldn't gather the strength to close his eyes as Togore scattered into dust, and Toriel finally let her tears fall. Asriel, who was still feeling weak, did his best to hug his mother, while Asgore took a knee and put a hand on her shoulder.

Despite that, the only thing on Sans's mind was the fact that Frisk was gone. The human that had been such an important part of this story was no more.

What was left to do? Sans had no idea how they were supposed to live with nothing left. Maybe they could take the boat and search for some mainland... but was there really anything out there? Sans had always read that the humans had lived in larger landmasses far from Te Deum, maybe they could find somewhere suitable to live out their lives. Sans would spend his days telling bad jokes and trying to act like everything was okay, when in reality he was always going to be a little messed up from this.

Toriel began to quiet down, and Sans turned around to face the family. Asgore, Toriel, and Asriel, all with each other again, but without a place to live. Sans was pretty sure that, now, it was probably going to be up to him that this family didn't shatter for the billionth time.

"We all need to get sailing." Sans told them, making the three Dreemurrs look up at him. Slowly, they all got to their feet and went inside the back room, pulling the boat out. Sans helped them push it forward to where it was close to the edge of the water, which was now splashing up towards the edge of what remained of the throne room. It settled gently in the waves, and everyone proceeded to get onboard.

"Y'know, when it comes to you three being unhappy..." the skeleton looked back at them with a wink. "...I think that the _tides have turned._ "

 _ **The End**_

* * *

 _A blinding light... the feeling of a cold, stone floor... a cold breeze flowing through the air..._

The human gasped suddenly, rolling onto its back as it woke up. Where was it? None of this seemed familiar... did it? Maybe it did, but the human couldn't tell. There was nothing that they could understand at the moment.

 _Where am I?_ While the human had no clue where they were exactly, they could certainly deduce what this location was- some sort of castle, with a jet of pure darkness shooting out of it and reaching as far up as the eye could see.

 _Why is it so dark? Didn't I just see light?_ The human thought to itself. It had seen light of some sort... and then just woke up here. The more they thought, the more the human started to realize that not only did they not know where they were, or what they were doing here... but they had no clue who they were, either.

A voice could be heard not too far off, and the figure that it belonged to approached the human swiftly. "There you are!" This being said, with a mixture of relief and worry.  
"We've been looking everywhere for you!"

From what the human could tell, this being was very dark- was it made out of shadow?

An image flashed through their mind, a shadowy monster looking at them with a glare that could kill, and the words, _**"Our story isn't over, Kris."**_

The human scrambled away from whoever this was- they looked very similar to the thing they'd seen in their vision.

"Kris?!" The stranger said, sounding shocked, and maybe a little hurt as well. "Oh, Kris... are you alright? I didn't mean to frighten you, honest!" Whoever this was, they sounded really... friendly. As if they'd known Kris for a long, long, time.

"Who-what-where-" Kris stammered, and the figure walked closer, tilting its head gently. "Um... Kris... do you need to take a nap? Where in the world have you been?"

The stranger sounded equally as confused as Kris, if that was even their name. They assumed that it must be, it was the only name that came to mind, and it was what the stranger was referring to them as.

"Who are you?" The human asked, earning a soft laugh from the stranger, who reached his hand forward and helped Kris to his feet.

"It's me, Kris." The stranger said politely. "Your best friend, Ralsei."


End file.
